Rules Set In Love: Notebook 1
by HaleyJo
Summary: Love is something you can never plan for, no matter how brilliant you are. Even if you’re a college-bound prodigy, or the greatest detective in the world. Love changes all the rules, even those everyone believed to be set in stone. LxOC
1. Tempting Fate

Disclaimer: I obviously don't own Death Note. I only own Ebony and a couple other OCs. I'd really like to know why we have to put these disclaimer things in here. We obviously don't own the stories we're altering. That's kind of clear with the name '_fan_fiction'. Seriously!

Author's Notes: Ok, this is my attempt at a Death Note LxOC fanfic. It's my first, so please be gentle.

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**1. TEMPTING FATE**

'_School sucks. I learned way more just by hanging out at the damn library! I'm not learning anything I haven't already looked up. Why the hell did I come here again...? Oh, yes. I thought it'd be good for me. Next time I decide to do something because "it'd be good for me," I'm going to smack myself.'_

"Having trouble, Miss Ebony?"

A young girl glanced upward at the teacher that had been making his rounds and decided to pause at her desk. He always did that and it both pissed her off and creeped her out. She had no proof, but she just knew this man was a definite pervert, practically a child molester, and she didn't think she was just being paranoid. She was certain other students suspected this as well since they would sometimes whisper and point at him when he wasn't looking.

"No, sir," She replied flatly, "No trouble."

The only good thing was that the man wasn't skilled in drawing out a conversation, so her statement ended the dialogue. He left her to herself so she could finish, which she did in about fifteen minutes.

Dropping her pencil onto the desk, Ebony leaned back in her chair a little to try to get comfortable. Well, as comfortable as one could get in a plastic chair anyway. She flexed her bare toes and those of her left foot grabbed onto the metal bar that helped support the desk and chair. She had never been able to get used to wearing shoes, so she went without them whenever possible. It irritated the teachers to Hell and back, but she persisted in ignoring her school-issued slippers, so they eventually stopped bugging her about it, though some did still shoot her dirty looks. She didn't really see what the big deal was. It wasn't like she was hurting anyone, and the chances of cutting her foot on something from the floor were minimal since litter wasn't tolerated here and she usually watched her footing, just to be on the safe side. So really, what was the harm?

As she waited for the bell to ring, she started observing her classmates, a hobby she'd developed over her life. Many of them weren't even doing the assignment, chatting with their neighbors instead, and of those who were, several of them were cheating or writing down random answers. She could hear a spare few of them whispering about her, which she knew since they would glance in her direction occasionally, but it something she was not unused to. People often gossiped about her because no one knew anything about her and she had no family that anyone knew of. There were many rumors of where she came from and how she lived and why she had no family, many of them quite outlandish, but that didn't stop people from believing them to be true.

'_Thank God or whoever the hell is up there!'_ Ebony jumped up from her seat when the last bell finally decided to ring. Packing her things as quickly as she could, Ebony wrapped her fingers around the handle of her wheeled backpack and proceeded to drag it to the side of the room after stuffing her slippers inside it.

Out of all the students that attended this school, Ebony was the only one who used a wheeled backpack instead of the kind one actually had to carry on one's back. She had been picked on occasionally during her first weeks here for having such a backpack, people calling her a wuss since she wouldn't carry the thing on her back. She merely scoffed and said that she'd rather drag the damn thing around than lose all blood circulation in her arms and end up with severe back problems before she hit her mid twenties. She didn't get picked on all that often, though. At least not to her face. She was sure people trashed her behind her back, but she really didn't care. They were just people who wouldn't matter in her life in the next minute or two, so why bother being upset by it?

Grabbing a rag, Ebony proceeded to clean the chalkboard, since it was her job to do so this week. Getting done as quickly as possible, she got the teacher's ok and promptly left the room, eager to get out of there.

People stared at her as she walked by, which wasn't entirely unusual, not at all. She was used to being stared at. It was inevitable, what with the way she looked. She was indeed an unusual beauty with torrents of snowy curls cascading down her small back to end at her hips, almost the same shade as her ivory skin. Her bangs fell over her large eyes, enhancing their strange mix of soft pink irises and crimson pupils. Her coloring was strange, to be sure, but only the extremely prejudiced, superstitious, or jealous could bring themselves to sneer at it. Her bone structure was small, the kind of structure most assumed models had but actually didn't since that was more an illusion due to most models being so tall.

Due to having such an appearance, she did have many admirers, but she didn't really notice those around her enough to realize people's reactions to her. She knew she was stared at a lot, but it never truly clicked that it was because she was very pretty. In her mind, she rationalized it as simple curiosity from seeing something so strange-looking.

Ebony noticed someone as she walked, but that was merely because she was on somewhat close terms with him. Japan's number one student, Yagami Light, was picking up a black notebook from the ground, flipping through the pages before tucking it in his bag. She noticed other girls staring at him, immature infatuation clear in their eyes. It made sense since Light was a very attractive boy with his bronze hair and red-brown eyes and tall, slender form, but Ebony wasn't interested in him in that way. She knew him well enough, which was more than most other girls could say, but that was just because he was her tutor every Wednesday and Thursday afternoon. She supposed she could call him a friend of sorts, but nothing beyond that.

Speaking of which, she needed to make sure she didn't procrastinate too much on the homework he'd given her this time. She had a nasty procrastination habit, but that was partially because she hated math, the subject Light was tutoring her in. She wasn't necessarily bad at it, she was just a bit slow at picking up the patterns. Once she got that, she was great, it was just the getting there that was the hitch.

"Stupid volume of a cone and circumscribing of a stupid triangle," She mumbled irately. She then tilted her head when she heard a sound that was quite uncommon on the school grounds.

The sound of a baby.

Now, she knew that a couple of girls had disappeared from school because they got pregnant, but it was very rare of any of them to come back with their babies. That aside, she also hadn't seen any students pregnant this year. Looking toward the noise, a little way ahead of her was a young woman surrounded by some high school girls and a few boys.

'_Oh! That's Ikina-sensei! She must have finally had her baby!'_ Ebony recalled how Ikina Rin, the guidance counselor, had left school sometime about five months ago due to her pregnancy, so another person had taken over for her. She liked Ikina a lot, she was always quite kind to her despite how she looked and how others reacted to her. Ebony had never gone in for any counseling, but she often chatted with the kind woman during lunch, helping her pick out ideas for her baby's room and name and other such things.

"Ah! Ebony-chan," The dark haired woman had noticed her, her chocolate eyes twinkling in the way only a mother's could. She waved her over.

"What are you doing, Ikina-sensei?" Asked a girl, wrinkling her nose at the approaching Ebony, "She might hurt your baby!"

A sharp glare shut the girl up, but she wasn't the only one who felt that way. Even when she didn't mean for it to, Ebony had a rather forbidding air about her, like watching a domestic tiger that could revert back to its instinctive violence at any moment. It really wouldn't have surprised any of the students if Ebony did somehow hurt Ikina's new baby even though no one had ever witnessed her committing even a tiny act of violence.

"What's its name?" Ebony asked as she came close and looked at the little baby in Ikina's arms.

"Sachiko," Ikina smiled gently and Ebony started biting on a nail. Sachiko had been one of the first names she'd suggested to the new mother, "Would you like to hold her?"

Ebony bit her lip and flexed her fingers as she looked at the little baby squirming in Ikina's arms. She smiled nervously and nodded, letting Ikina carefully place the squirming bundle of blankets and flesh in her arms. The baby immediately stopped fussing so much once Ebony was able to support her head better, and opened big brown eyes to stare up at the white haired girl. The baby started giggling and reaching up to grab at Ebony's ivory curls. Ebony grinned and poked her tongue out at the little Sachiko, gently poking her little button nose. Sachiko giggled more and grabbed the offending finger, biting on it with her toothless gums.

"She's so cute!" Ebony grinned up at Ikina for a second before turning her gaze back to the baby, "How old is she?"

"About a month and a half," Ikina replied, finding the whole scene completely endearing.

"She's so little," Ebony remarked, looking at the baby with a slightly puzzled expression, "It's hard to believe we were all this small at some point."

"I know what you mean."

The other students were shocked. The baby Sachiko had thrown a fit whenever someone other than her mother tried to hold her, but she clearly loved Ebony. No one could deny that the image of the albino-looking girl holding the little baby was absolutely adorable. It was clear that she had very strong mothering qualities, something that they had never seen in her before.

"I need to get home," Ebony suddenly announced as she gently tugged her finger back from Sachiko's tiny mouth and handed the baby back to her mother, more or less unaware of the shocked atmosphere surrounding her, "Dumb homework is calling me."

While she walked away from the school, she mused on what to do next with her life. College would be a good thing, and it was something she'd like to do. She'd been researching several colleges lately and was hoping to be able to find one that would be able to teach her what she wanted to know. She had a vague idea of what she wanted to do, she just wasn't too certain of how to go about it…

Deciding to think on it later, Ebony quickened her steps and vanished from the world quickly after that, a skill she found most useful, not wanting to be around people anymore. She wasn't really a people-person, never had been, and she hadn't yet been presented with a reason to work on that little flaw of hers. She was getting through school and keeping her job, right? What more could the world rightly ask of her?

She would later laugh at herself for asking such a Fate-tempting question.

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Author's Notes: So, that's the beginning to my story. Tell me what you think. No flames, though. I like constructive criticism, emphasis on the 'constructive' part. If you're just going to diss me, don't even bother leaving a review, please.

(P.S. I'm not going to put a disclaimer on every chapter, just on this one, so don't get on my back about not putting one in. It's unnecessary.)


	2. Bakery

Author's Note: Here's the next chapter. I've only gotten about three reviews so far, but I was too eager to post the second chapter, so here it is!

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**2. BAKERY**

The sun was just beginning its descent from the sky, reflecting off the many metal surfaces of the city it was warming with its orange-golden rays. Some of those rays landed on a small bakery.

Bakeries have always been one of those things in life you either loved or hated. You could even do both at the same time if you had a brain that could look through multiple perspectives at once, a somewhat rare trait. The scent that was always floating through and out of bakeries was heavenly to put it mildly and could draw in even the most resilient of dieters. It was also a well-known fact that you didn't want to have to walk by a bakery when you were hungry, especially if you didn't have time to stop and get something to calm the suddenly intensified hunger pains.

This bakery was nothing too snazzy, nothing terribly eye-catching. It was small and modest, with a sort of homey feel. Yes, just a normal-looking bakery on a normal-looking street with normal-looking employees.

Well, except for one.

In one of the restroom stalls, a young girl named after wood was dressing in her uniform, pulling on the black, short-sleeved dress that fell to just above the knee, cursing under her breath as she awkwardly groped for the zipper on the back and sighing once she found it and pulled it up to close the back.

'_You'd think I'd have gotten used to this damn thing by now…'_

After making sure her white, ruffled-but-otherwise-rather-plain apron was securely tied, she left the stall and approached the mirror to fix her hair. She was pulling the upper part back like Alice from Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and securing it with a black ribbon, which would serve to keep her hair out of the way and minimize the chances of any getting in the food.

'_Nothing's more disgusting than hairy food. Ugh!'_

Yawning and stretching her arms over her head, Ebony left the restroom, hurrying for the kitchen in the back. With one final tug on her hair to ensure it would stay where it was supposed to, she grinned and fiddled with a silver pendant that hung about her throat as she glanced around the kitchen, ideas and things swirling about inside her brain.

Ebony then set to work creating another masterpiece. In this little bakery, everyone knew she was the best dessert maker, her creations always both beautiful and delicious. It was often a shame to eat her work, so people commonly took pictures before eating them. It was flattering, to say the least.

"Ebony-chan!"

Porcelain curls bounced as she looked up from her work to see one of her coworkers waltz in. Gensai Leiko was her name, which Ebony had always privately found a bit ironic and amusing. Leiko meant arrogant, which this girl certainly was. Her shoulder blade-length brown hair was pulled up in a high ponytail and a large quantity of make-up adorned her face. Her uniform was the same as Ebony's, only she was wearing black stockings and low black pumps unlike Ebony's ankle-length black leggings that she rarely removed. She was smiling sweetly, but Ebony could clearly see the scowl underneath.

Leiko had never liked Ebony. In fact, it wasn't too much of a stretch to say that she hated the other girl. It did sort of bug her to know that someone who didn't even know her hated her, but she had grown accustomed to it.

"So, how many hearts are you going to crush today, Ebony-chan?" Leiko asked as she hung up her coat, which seemed rather expensive. It probably was. She came from a rather wealthy family. Ebony mentally scowled at the –chan added to her name when Leiko was no friend of hers. She was an annoyance, especially since she seemed way too determined to get Ebony a boyfriend for whatever reason.

"None," Ebony shrugged as she scratched her cheek, accidentally leaving a line of white frosting behind, only the shadows cast revealing it was there at all, "People have to be in love to get their heart broken, or so I hear."

Leiko brushed away her words like she hadn't even heard them. Maybe she hadn't, "Just what are you waiting for, anyway? You're seventeen! You should be looking for a boyfriend! Or…" She gave the younger girl a sly grin, "do you already have a man? That would explain things. You're being faithful, that's ok."

"I don't have a boyfriend or lover or anything," Ebony scowled, pausing in her motions for a moment so she wouldn't take out her frustrations on the poor cake she was working so hard on, "I'm really just not interested in anyone that way. Besides, I would want the man I spend the rest of my life with to be smart enough to have an occasional intelligent conversation with, and I have yet to see any such man."

"Who says you would spend the rest of your lives together if you went out with a few guys? Especially that one Yukio hottie," Leiko sighed as she envisioned the young man to whom she was referring. Amori Yukio was a man who had been bringing Ebony flowers and gifts in an unfaltering attempt to woo her into his arms – or more precisely, his bedroom – for going on three months now. He was attractive enough with wavy dark hair and hazel eyes, his face was well proportioned and he clearly worked out, but Ebony wasn't interested.

"He's handsome," Ebony said as she took up a tube and started filling it with black-colored frosting, "But I don't like him. I would want to date a person I like, not just a person who's attractive."

"You're so old fashioned," Leiko rolled her dark brown eyes, "Going out with a hot guy doesn't mean it's automatically a life-long commitment. Besides, you're too tense all the time. Getting a bit of exercise would do you a world of good."

Ebony both bridled and flushed crimson at the implication that having sex with a good-looking man would be of any benefit to her. She had decided a long time ago that if she ever lost her virginity, she wanted to lose it to the one she loved. Not that she ever expected to have someone like that in her life, so it was a moot point.

"Moot point," Ebony voiced that last thought, "I don't like him at all. He gets on my nerves so easily."

"Old fashioned," Leiko muttered, "He is too hot for words, and you're giving him up just because of a few personality quirks?"

Ebony just kept her eyes on her work, leaning in close to observe the details, and not bothering to contradict her. If she was too old fashioned, than Leiko was too modern, and modern girls didn't care enough about who they went out with, or ended up in bed with, as long as they were good-looking. Ebony had never understood that, and hoped that she never would.

"So what's the cake for?" Leiko asked as she looked over the girl's shoulder to watch, nearly green with envy of her steady hand.

"Nothing in particular as of yet," Ebony replied as she finished up the border on the edge of the round cake. Looking over it one last time, she stepped back and observed her work.

It was a round, two-tier chocolate cake with white frosting that looked as smooth as glass. Black frosting was used as a fringe at both the cake's base and the edge. A circle of black frosting in the center was surrounding a curly blob of whipped cream with a large strawberry in the center. There were smaller strawberries decorating the edge as well, each set in a small blob of whipped cream with black frosting rimming them.

"Wonderful work as always, Ebony-chan."

Both girls looked up to see their boss coming in. Hirase Kano was a middle aged, balding man with a beer gut and a small, dark grey moustache. He kind of looked like one of those useless cops you always saw on TV who were seen in doughnut shops and the like rather than doing their jobs.

But Kano was nothing like the stereotype. He was a man who valued hard work and good results. His agitated glance to Leiko showed that part of his personality.

"What are you doing just standing around, Gensai?" Kano demanded, "You keep lazing about like this and you'll never get as good as Ebony-chan, and you've been here longer than she has."

Leiko grumbled and moved away, seething with jealousy. Ebony flushed and felt a bit guilty for her talent, which she hated. She liked being proud of her abilities, which made other people hate her. It was so irritating!

"Put this one right up front," Kano said as he turned to Ebony, the irritated look quickly replaced with a proud smile. He was obviously pleased to have such a talented worker in his humble bakery.

"Yes, sir," Ebony carefully gathered the cake into her arms and left the kitchen, heading for the front. She carefully set the cake in one of the display windows, grinning at how perfectly it had turned out. After nudging it just a bit into the perfect place, she retreated back to the kitchens, back to making sweets as was her enjoyment.

Doing so caused her to completely miss it when an elderly gentleman entered the bakery and bought the cake she'd placed in the display window.

Ebony continued her afternoon shift as usual over the course of the hours, leaving to some other shop during her late lunch break before she was right back in the hot kitchens. They were fine in the earlier hours, but they sure did get hot as they day dragged on. She was relieved when her shift was finally over, freeing her from that small world of ovens and icing.

She took her hair down as she hung up her uniform in her locker, changing back into her street clothes. They consisted of a black, high-necked, short-sleeved tunic and arm covers. The arm covers were made of fishnet from her shoulders to her wrists instead of solid cloth, but there was solid black cloth from just above her elbows to just below them. She hooked a black holster around her slender but curved hips, hanging from two sturdy chains, and shut her locker with her bare foot.

It was around five in the afternoon when she finally exited the bakery, bidding the other workers a good night as she always did. It was in her nature to be somewhat overly polite, something people were either irritated by or found charming. Her right hand fiddled with one of the chains securing her black hip holster, her left unoccupied. That was mildly irritating, but she ignored it, soon forgetting all about it.

Closing her eyes for a moment, she reopened them and stared upward at the blue sky. It was too blue; no clouds to imagine into shapes, but it didn't really matter since she wasn't really looking at the sky anyway. She was looking far beyond it, allowing herself to slip into a state somewhat like sleep, only more of a heavy daze, allowing her feet to carry her and trusting they would bring her to where she wanted to go.

Even when her mind didn't know where to go, her feet always seemed to know.

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Author's Notes: Please review! I want to know how I'm doing! I know this seems to be starting out slow, but that's how I write. It's no fun if I just jump right into it, now is it? I've got over twenty chapters written already, but I won't post them if I don't get any reviews, so please review! I want to post.


	3. Sound and Scent

Author's Note: Ok, here's chapter three. Thank you to everyone who reviewed. I seriously appreciate it. By the way, if you have any questions, I'll try to answer them at the bottom of the chapters, so ask away if you ever feel confused about something. If you're confused about something, there's probably a ninety-eight percent chance that someone else is confused about the same something as well. Yay! L percentages!

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**3. SOUND AND SCENT**

A young man was crouched over his laptop, a thumb against his lips as he gnawed on the nail. The blue-tinted white light from the flat screen lit up his features, revealing an abnormally pale face and thick, ink black hair that went all over the place since he never thought to take care of it. Wide, almost completely round eyes gazed unblinkingly at the laptop, pupils dilated heavily due to the dark surrounding him. The heavy curtains were drawn tight against the setting sun, not an unusual thing for him to do.

He pulled his thumb from his mouth and picked up a fork, digging it into a slice of cake and guiding the sweet substance past his lips. This was a cake from this small bakery Watari had happened upon earlier that day and both he and L knew the elderly man would be visiting it quite frequently. This cake he had gotten from that unremarkable bakery was one of the best cakes he'd ever had, and the evidence was in the fact that the cake hadn't lasted more than a few hours. He made a mental note to attempt to make the next one last longer, though he knew himself well enough by this point to know he would never be able to actually pace himself as far as sweets were concerned.

His mind then snapped back to the case he was working on as though it had never left it.

This 'Kira' case was without a doubt the hardest case he had ever had the pleasure of catching. Most other cases didn't usually ruffle him and he saw them more as puzzles for him to solve, something to stimulate his mind. He knew he was dealing with real people and understood there was real pain involved in these cases he considered 'puzzles' for his own entertainment, and he respected that, it was just hard for him to see them any other way.

This case was different, though. People were literally dropping dead left and right every day, meaning the death toll was constantly on the rise, well into the hundreds by this point and soon to be in the thousands, he was certain, when one took into account the criminals on the run that Kira had surely judged by this point. He admitted that this case was ruffling his feathers and he was determined to see Kira to his execution.

It was in a rare lapse in concentration that the young man stood and moved to the ceiling-to-floor window, pushing aside the blinds to gaze out upon the city that was lighting up as the sky darkened down.

It was strange to think that one of those people walking around below him was Kira, the person who was somehow killing off criminals. He knew Kira could kill from a distance, if that instance with Lind L. Tailor was any indication, and he was now certain about how Kira had to have both a name and a face to kill.

The question was _how_? There was no method he could think of that could explain how Kira was killing people he had no physical access to. One could speculate that a conspiracy of people was behind the murders, but he was positive that wasn't the case. It was too airtight. If it was an organization of individuals, someone would leave a hole somewhere; do something sloppy that would leave him a clue to lead him directly to Kira.

No, Kira was one person and he would definitely catch this one person and deliver him to his execution. He'd do it personally if he could, but his reclusive nature wouldn't allow it.

As his wide eyes watched the sky darken, turning different shades of deep blues and purples as the sun fell, he rolled around the idea of leaving the hotel for a short while. It had been quite some time since he'd last tasted outside air for longer than it took to move to another hotel, and an even longer time since he'd last been given the chance to really enjoy the outdoors, even from behind a window, due to this case. Now, he was not an outdoorsy person in even the loosest definition of the term, but he did appreciate nature and would attempt to take the time to enjoy it every so often. Going outside for a few hours wouldn't be too horrible, and the likelihood of anything unfortunate happening was very low since it would be nighttime. No one would bother with him and even fewer would remember him at all unless they were to see him again. Watari had made this very suggestion a few days ago; saying some time outside would do him some good.

"Watari," He said as she stepped out of the darkening room and into a better lit sitting room. An old man with a white moustache and oval glasses turned to regard the younger one, listening politely, "I'm going to go walk around for a while. I will be back by midnight at the latest."

"Very well, Ryuzaki," Watari nodded, using his fake name as 'Ryuzaki' used his. This young man was, of course, the famous detective known to the world as L, though no one would know it by looking at him, "I'll be working on setting us up in the Imperial Hotel. It's the closest hotel to the NPA headquarters, as you requested."

"Thank you," L said. Stepping into a pair of tattered tennis shoes that had clearly seen better days, the young man left the room without another word, his posture slightly hunched and his hands in the pockets of his oversized blue jeans.

People stared at him as he left, which was to be expected. He was fully aware that he wasn't in the slightest bit normal, but he also was fully aware that he had few reasons to be and absolutely no reasons to attempt to be. Therefore, he completely ignored all of the staring eyes and merely continued on his way, knowing the next thoughts to enter the minds of those around him would wipe the memory of him from their thoughts forever.

Unwilling to go into the city with its bright lights and loud noises and petulant inhabitants, the eccentric detective headed for the quieter side of town. As he had known, no one gave him a second glance after the first speculative stare. L's feet ended up leading him to the park, which wasn't a bad thing. The leaves of the trees, leaves that were gradually losing their lush green color in favor of the oranges and yellows and reds and browns as autumn began to suck their lives away, would serve to mute the city lights and sounds. So he entered, his thoughts on the case even though he wasn't at his laptop or in his darkened room.

That was another reason for this nighttime stroll. Being in a different environment might stimulate new ideas on how Kira killed and how he could be caught.

He had been walking for quite a while, going over new possibilities and theories and scenarios and dismissing the majority of them, before he heard a sound that did not coincide with what one could expect to hear out in the park of a busy city at this time of night. L tilted his head slightly, which caused some of his hair to move away from his ear a little so as to allow him to hear better.

It was singing.

He was too far away to really make out the words, but the melody was clear. It was elegant and flowing, like the tides of a calm ocean. The voice was strong in volume but delicate in tone, soft and lilting. It seemed to reach out to anyone who cared to listen, tendrils of sound curling around in what he could almost describe as what he imagined a mother's caress to be like. Curiosity taking over, L couldn't help but be drawn to the voice, wanting to know what was making that heavenly sound which grew louder as he came closer and closer, walking around a few trees.

There was a large pond in this park, almost big enough to be considered a small lake. The full moon was reflected in the calm, glassy surface, the water looking black due to the night surrounding it. A few benches and trees dotted its shores, few enough to give the place an air of privacy and probably intimacy for young lovers who were often drawn to such places, the idea of nearby water thought to be romantic by most of the human populace.

Oddly enough, the music stopped, leaving a ringing silence in its wake. He glanced around, certain the music had been coming from this direction, but he couldn't see anyone.

But that didn't mean whoever it had been hadn't seen him. With that thought in mind, L strained his eyes a little harder as he looked around. He couldn't be certain, but he was at least 89 percent positive that he saw a flash of white disappear down the walk and behind the foliage, headed for the exit. He was 100 percent positive, however, that he could smell something rich and sweet lingering on the air that reminded him strongly of the cake he'd been eating earlier. Whatever it was, it was mouthwatering.

It was getting late, however, and the early December wind was biting through his thin shirt to nip at his porcelain skin. He couldn't dwell on this mystery any further, lest he worry Watari. When he thought about it, he shouldn't want to ponder over this at all, really, since it was completely irrelevant to his case. However, due to his curious nature, he felt compelled to figure out what had been making that lovely music in this normal city park and why it smelled like sweets and pastries.

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Author's Notes: Ok, so now L is in the picture. Just so you know, there is going to be a lot of dialogue from the manga in the first half of the story because that's how I have to do it, so please be patient with me. I promise you won't be disappointed if you just wait a bit!-

**sun-sun kat:** Yeah, the Kira killings have started. If you look at chapter one, you'll see that Ebony sees Light pick up Ryuk's Death Note from the school grounds. It's not super obvious, but it's not the main focus of the chapter so...yeah. The killings are definitely underway by this point, especially since we're seeing L walking around while thinking on it.

And a big thank you to everyone for liking Ebony! That makes me so happy! Please review. They prompt me to update.


	4. Watari

Author's Note: Can't really think of anything to say. I'm just so glad people like Ebony. I hope I'll fit her with L in a way that's believable. I promise I'll do my best!

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**4. WATARI**

She glanced over at the girl as she did often. She couldn't really help it, given that she was so strange-looking and acted rather odd.

Ozu Mine had been the librarian for many, many years and had often worked in the library during her teenage years to earn a little extra money for clothes and nights out with friends. In short, she'd seen plenty of…interesting characters. Girls and guys studying, others coming to try and pick up dates or one-night stands. She'd seen those she was certain were pedophiles and seen drug dealers come in and out, 'reading' as a cover for while they awaited shipments. But still, this girl was by far the most interesting.

She only ever knew her first name, Ebony, and she'd been coming into this library since she was still quite small, maybe five or six years old. She'd leafed through the books at first before she came up and asked for a list of all the books in the library. Mine had been a little suspicious, worried about possible theft, but handed over the list without complaint.

That was when the little girl had proceeded to read every book in the library regardless of genre or length. Mine had watched in awe as the little girl plowed through the books, finishing the entire library in about two years. Even though she'd finished, Ebony had continued to come, just not always to read unless there was a new shipment of books. Sometimes she simply found an out of the way corner to sit in and draw, and sometimes she talked to herself. Actually, she had talked to herself so much that Mine had grown concerned that the girl had some kind of mental problem, but she'd stopped when she turned twelve, so she supposed it was just her way of dealing with her loneliness.

It was quite obvious that the poor girl was alone, which was what led Mine to approaching her and trying to be a friend to her. Ebony had been polite enough and seemed happy, but Mine could tell that it was merely out of courtesy and that she was uncomfortable with and untrusting of people. It was a rather sad thing since the girl was quite sweet and pretty.

These reasons were why she allowed Ebony to come into the library pretty much whenever she wanted and hang out for as long as she pleased. She'd also helped Ebony to locate the fliers for different colleges she could apply to, happy that the girl was at least planning on continuing her education.

Mine sighed as she pushed her rimless glasses up the bridge of her nose, watching as the white haired girl poured over various college fliers, writing down the pros and cons of each and weighing them against each other meticulously. She was completely absorbed in her task and didn't notice how the others who entered the library would stare at her, entranced by her unusual beauty. It was kind of funny how the girl really had no idea how she affected the people around her, but Mine could see it clear as day. She'd been amused countless times by watching many men have to leave to take care of a…slight problem. Chuckling under her breath, Mine tucked a lock of pale brown hair behind her ear and turned back to her computer to see who had overdue books and would thus be getting a letter in the mail demanding their return plus a late fee.

Ebony sighed heavily, allowing her head to fall onto the table with a loud thud, unknowingly startling a few nearby people. There were just so many colleges and she couldn't figure out which one she wanted to go to. She needed to find one that could give her a scholarship since there was no way she could pay for it on her own, but she needed a school that would allow her to study what she wanted to. She wasn't all that worried about getting the scholarship, but she just couldn't decide on a school. Heaving another sigh, she lifted her head and turned her eyes to a flier she'd been looking over for a while now.

It was a flier advertising the To-Oh University. It was a very good school and had the types of classes she wanted, but it was also very strict about who they let in, especially on scholarships. She was concerned that her appearance and some hard-to-control habits could keep her from getting in. After all, what kind of school would want someone like her walking through their prestigious halls?

"Oh, stop it," Ebony muttered to herself, too low for anyone to hear her, "It shouldn't matter. If I do well and they still keep me out over how I look, that's grounds to sue for discrimination…Not that I could actually afford to sue anyone, but still. I could protest."

Shaking her head, she reluctantly decided to seek some help. She gathered the fliers into her small hands and approached the kind librarian.

"Excuse me, Ozu-san," Ebony tapped her fingers against the fliers, an unconscious motion. The tall, thin woman looked down over her glasses at the white haired girl, her face kind enough, "Could you help me with something?"

"Of course, Ebony-chan," Mine smiled kindly and closed the late fee window on her computer before turning to the smaller female, "How can I help?"

"Well, I'm trying to apply to a college for a scholarship, but I can't decide which one," Ebony showed her the four fliers she'd narrowed down to after searching through about fifteen of them for the past three hours, "You have children in college. Where did they go?"

Mine was surprised for a moment that Ebony knew she had children before she remembered that she had photos of said children on her desk, a few of which showed her kids' acceptance ceremonies into colleges, one graduating. One of her kids, her oldest, had dropped out of college, but that was just because he wasn't a college person. He still became as successful as he'd wanted and his wife was about to give Mine her first grandchild.

"Well, that all depends on what you want to study," Mine replied, looking over the fliers in Ebony's white hands, "Do you have anything in mind?"

"Psychology," Ebony responded right away, "Studying human behaviors, reactions, mental disorders, things like that."

"I see," Mine was quite impressed. Most kids her age had no idea of what they really wanted to do and would simply wing it and find out along the way, "Well, I'd have to say that To-Oh would be the best choice. This one is pretty good too," Mine tapped another flier, "But To-Oh would take you farther. It's mostly based on criminal anthropology, though."

"Studying criminals," Ebony bit down on her fingernail for a moment before she grinned slightly, "Now _that_ sounds interesting. And criminal anthropology also goes to study human beings in general, not just criminals…" She trailed off and glanced up at Mine, her hand retreating from her mouth to fiddle with the dangly earring piercing her right ear, "How exactly do I go about applying for a scholarship?"

Ebony listened carefully as Mine told her the processes of getting scholarships and offered advice on how to present herself as someone worthy of a scholarship not just due to her grade marks, but in her behavior. Ebony listened hard to that part, but she had doubts that she would actually be able to pull that part off. Mine tried to reassure her that any school would be thrilled to have her, but she was still unsure.

That would have to wait for another time, though. There was no sense in worrying over it now, as that would just hamper her chances at getting in.

It was about two or so hours later that Ebony left the library. Mine had given her all the help she could and even helped her to fill out the applications that were distributed at the giant building full of all manners of tome and text. She was a bit nervous about actually mailing them in, scared of being rejected. She had never really had a lot of options in her life, and this was really the only was that was even somewhat safe and could lead her to living something of a normal life for once.

"A normal life," She sighed and looked up at the darkening sky, watching a few overeager stars wink giddily into sight, "That would be a nice change, but what the hell is 'normal' anyway? Aside from the dictionary definition, of course."

Sighing again – something she seemed to do often – her petal pink eyes gazed down at the forms in her hands. Ebony sat down on a nearby bench and folded herself to sit cross-legged, laying the forms in her lap. College was a big responsibility for anyone, but she wasn't really worried about that. She knew she was responsible enough and could easily excel should she get in, it was just the people she was worried about. She had never been good with people and social situations were always awkward since she wasn't sure what people expected of her. How she was to act and all that. It was all so complicated!

'_Human beings are so weird and they don't even seem to know it,'_ She grumbled in her head, _'Or accept it. Any normal weird trait seems to be placed under some form of mental disorder. Stupid people.'_

Tugging at her hair absently, she unfolded her legs and got back to walking, her bare feet making faint slapping sounds against the rapidly cooling pavement. The sun was going down and she was in the shade of the buildings, so the cement wasn't as hot as it was during the day. Her feet were rather comfortable as they carried her to a large mailbox. After taking a deep breath and giving herself some mental encouragement, Ebony dropped the form into the box, cringing slightly as the metal door clanged as it shut. The sound seemed quite final to her, like she was somehow signing her life away.

Laughing off that thought, she decided to pop into a nearby store and grab a quick thing she'd been meaning to get for a few days now. Once she exited the store, the white haired girl could be seen carrying a wicker basket full of bright red apples. She hummed a little as she walked, a tune she'd known practically since she was born. To amuse herself, Ebony started jumping from crack to crack in the sidewalk, giggling as she imagined all the mothers whose backs she was breaking. She didn't really believe in such a silly superstition, but they were fun to poke at.

"NPA," Ebony trilled as she climbed the steps up to the doors and pushed them open, her bare feet glad to be getting out of the growing cold. It _was_ the beginning of December, after all, "Now, how to go about this…"

"Ebony?"

Ebony jumped and spun around, somehow keeping all the apples in the basket. She then grinned widely as she recognized the man who had the look of your stereotypical, straight-laced detective. Unlike her boss at the bakery, this man fit the stereotype to a T.

"Yagami-san," Ebony held up the basket of apples for him, "I felt kind of bad for just dropping my tutoring lessons with Light-san, so these are for him as a peace offering."

"Thank you, Ebony," Yagami Soichiro smiled as he took the basket from the tiny girl, "I'm sure he'll appreciate them."

"Thanks. Just tell him that I had to quit the lessons due to my job and college research."

"I will."

Ebony then turned with every intention of walking away, only to run right into someone hard enough to be knocked over on her butt.

"Ow! Sorry!" Ebony looked up from her spot on the floor, seeing a most peculiar sight. It was a tall man dressed in a black trench coat with many buckles, black gloves, a black hat and mask concealing his face, and a silver briefcase in his hand. There was absolutely no way to identify this man at all. She allowed herself to grasp the hand he held out to her to help her hoist herself to her feet.

"Sorry for running into you like that. I wasn't watching where I was going."

"That's quite alright, young lady," She couldn't really tell the man's age by his voice. It was one of those ageless voices that could belong to almost anyone. But it was warm and comforting, making Ebony smile.

"Still, sorry about that," Ebony shifted her feet, "Anyway, I gotta get going. It was nice seeing you again, Yagami-san. Make sure Light-san gets those apples. They ward off doctors."

"I will, thank you," Soichiro waved to her, smiling slightly at the girl his son used to tutor, "Take care."

Now, she knew it was rude, but both curiosity and habit overcame common courtesy. Ebony made sure to be walking away fast enough so as to not look like she was eavesdropping, but also just slow enough for her to catch the name.

Watari.

'_Watari?'_ Ebony wondered who he was. There was nothing in Yagami Soichiro's tone to denote that he was a suspect, so he must be a friend of the police. Why have such a disguise, though? It didn't make sense. Could the police have really become so trusting? That seemed highly unlikely.

Or was this about…?

"Hey, you alright?" Ebony turned to see a young man with slightly wavy dark hair looking at her with concerned eyes. She remembered this man. He had been at the Yagami house once or twice during her tutoring lessons. Matsuda Touta was his name, if she was recalling correctly. She noticed his face seemed a little red. Did he have a fever?

"Yes," She then got an idea, and feigned ignorance, "Um, what's a Watari?"

"Watari's a person who connects us with L – Oh! I-I don't think I'm supposed to talk about that," He looked worried.

"Don't worry. I don't really understand what you're talking about anyway," Ebony shrugged, smiling at him to calm him down before she turned, "Bye! Have a good night."

"You too," Matsuda waved, glad that the girl didn't think anything of what he'd said.

And she didn't, really. She was merely curious and grinning slightly at being proven right. She had seen that broadcast of a mysterious, computer-altered voice challenging the mass murderer called Kira, identifying himself by a single gothic letter. In her mind, Ebony sent a wish of good luck to whoever this 'L' fellow was and his leather-clad companion, hoping that he would be the one to put the one known as 'Kira' in jail or on death row.

Whoever this Kira was and regardless of his motives, he deserved to suffer for his crimes.

* * *

**Mel1983:** I hadn't really seen the last chapter as romantic, but I suppose it kind of was now that I think about it. I'm glad that I seem to be writing L right. He's weird. And don't say you're not good with description. Your writing is awesome!

**IvoryCrayon:** I'm glad that this LxOC story is working for you. I know what you mean about OCxcannon stories, but there's not really any character in the series L can be believably placed with, at least not in my opinion. I'm glad you took a risk. You're braver than I am.

Author's Note: This one is to almost everyone else. I'm glad that you all like how they haven't met yet, but I'm not going to torture you...too terribly much, anyway. They'll meet relatively soon. I'm so happy that everyone seems to be enjoying this so far. I was worried about it, to be honest. I mean, _I_ liked it, but I wasn't sure if you all would. I'm glad to have some of my nervousness eased. I'll update soon. Please review!

-HaleyJo


	5. Possible In

Author's Note: It's hard as hell to keep myself from updating when I have so much written and I'm finally able to string it together, but I doubt any of you are going to complain. Even if you did, I wouldn't listen, so it doesn't really matter anyway.

* * *

**5. POSSIBLE IN**

If someone had had no idea what was going on, they might have thought the room was hit by a burglar. Wires snaked across the floor from outlets to a stack of about maybe a dozen monitoring sets, a couple laptops, and various other types of equipment. Carefully marked tapes were strewn about the floor and every available surface space along with many thick two to three inch thick files and loose papers. Some candy wrappers dotted the floor here and there and a small tray was holding a couple slices of cake, a cup of hot coffee, and a small dish filled with sugar cubes. The food was the only indicator that the room hadn't been ransacked because they weren't upturned on the floor or anything.

Two men sat before the monitoring equipment. One was a middle aged man name Yagami Soichiro, your typical, straight-laced detective, while the other was a ridiculously bizarre young man who seemed even younger due to his odd behavior. This man was L, the greatest detective in the world. As opposite as they seemed, L and Soichiro were working together to observe Yagami's family as they sat down to dinner, the Yagami daughter turning on some music program again. L truly cared little for such things and found it annoying that he had to listen to them. However, it was a small price to pay if the surveillance turned fruitful. Still, why was it that people followed famous individuals like that? He really didn't understand it one bit.

"_Hey, Light,"_ Yagami Sayu glanced at her older brother over her bowl, _"How come Ebony-chan never comes over anymore? I miss her. She was funny to talk to."_

"_I told you already,"_ Light sighed after he swallowed what was in his mouth, _"She's really busy with her job and applying to college. She just didn't have the time anymore."_

"Who is this Ebony-chan, Yagami-san?" L asked, intrigued by this new name to possibly add to the case.

"Ebony is a student at Light's school," Soichiro answered, "Light tutored her on Wednesdays and Thursdays from July of last year until November of last year. She had basically no concept of math beyond the basic adding and subtracting, so the teachers thought it best she had a tutor and placed her with my son."

"That seems logical," L nodded his head once, "Have the best student in the school help one of the worst since it more than likely won't impact his grades. Her parents agreed to this, I assume?"

"Ebony….she….she's always been very private about her personal life," Soichiro tried to find a way to put it delicately, "She enrolled in Light's school for her senior year by herself. She's never come forward on her own, but as far as I'm aware, no one has ever met or even seen her parents. She doesn't even have a last name that anyone knows of, but she's a good student and stays out of trouble, so no one asks questions."

"…I see," The cogs in L's mind whirred quickly, "So she and Yagami Light are friends, then?"

"Like I said, she's very private," Soichiro sighed before laughing a bit, the first time in several days, "I think they could be friends since they've hung out around the city a few times, but Ebony complained about the other girls in their school giving her more death glares than usual and asked if they could just stick to the lessons from then on."

L mused on that. It sounded like they were friends. Even if they didn't hang out recreationally all that much, they had tried. If he could somehow get into contact with this Ebony girl, he could probably get an unbiased evaluation of Yagami Light's behavior, something he couldn't get from the task force since Light was the Chief's own son. Tracking her down might be difficult, though, considering her lack of a surname, but it wasn't impossible. He just needed to know what he was looking for…

-oooOooo-

"I've studied the tapes we got from the bugs and cameras over the past five days, numerous times…" L stated as he peeled a chocolate from its wrapper. The rest of the team looked haggard, worn, and most needed a shave and some rest. This had clearly been quite stressful for all of them, especially Soichiro, "And my conclusion is, that of the people in the Kitamura and Yagami families, suspicious activity was observed in…nobody. We will remove the bugs and cameras."

Soichiro was visibly relieved, and while Matsuda said that they'd gotten nowhere with this, Soichiro said they'd simply have to start back from square one and work even harder. L dispersed the good mood, however, by stating that it was still a five percent possibility that Kira was among those monitored and was just being very careful to avoid any mistakes that could incriminate him.

It was truly starting to creep him out, this Kira's behavior. Most would suspect a normal person to give some reaction while they were killing people. A downturn of the mouth, narrowing of the eyes perhaps, something along those lines. But none of the subjects had shown such signs, which could only mean that Kira's mentality was already above and beyond the god complex. It might be nice to think this was divine retribution, but L wasn't one to shy away from theories just because they were uncomfortable.

Due to the lack of suspicious behavior, most would assume this just meant none of the subjects was guilty, but L was certain that Kira was on those tapes. His gut told him so, and his instincts were never wrong. It almost seemed like the only way to capture Kira was to have him admit to being Kira and then demonstrating his method of murder, but could he do that? Maybe, if he was very patient and very careful, he may be able to do just that. It wasn't impossible, his gut told him that as well.

Another thing his gut told him to do was to find this girl named after wood. Being a student of Light's – who L suspected more than any of their other possible Kiras – meant she would have had repetitive close contact with the bronze haired boy. Having someone with such untainted insight could work to his advantage. He already knew what the girl looked like from cameras Watari had retrieved from the NPA when she had come to give Soichiro apples to give to Light in a way of saying sorry for ending the lessons. Her appearance reminded him a lot of his first successor with her long white hair, but seeing as how the surveillance cameras at the NPA front desk weren't of the best quality, her exact features were unclear, especially given how she had never once faced the cameras. Finding her wouldn't be all that difficult, though, with such white hair. She would stand out like a sore thumb.

L's cell phone suddenly rang and he fished it from his pocket, holding it up to his ear by two fingers.

"Yes, Watari?"

"_I'm sorry, Ryuzaki,"_ Watari said, _"But I cannot find anything on Ebony besides her records at the high school. There was no photo of her there, either. She opted out of having a school picture."_

"I see. Thank you, Watari," The others waited after L put his phone away, but he didn't offer them any explanation as to what he and Watari had meant.

L didn't tell them, either. He figured they wouldn't appreciate it, especially Soichiro, if they knew he was seeking a possible in on the Yagami family that could be better than a secret camera or bug.

All he had to do was find it.

* * *

Author's Note: Ok, so now both are somewhat aware of the other's existence. Things are going to start moving forward a bit now and you guys will get your first real laugh soon. Despite the seriousness of the case, I've made sure to put in a good bit of comic relief. It'll be fun!

**MythCreatorWriter:** Don't worry, they won't be too similar. Ebony has her own personality just like L does even if they share some quirks. No worries!

**Lady of Dreams and Nightmares:** Bingo! You rock!

-HaleyJo


	6. Graduation

Author's Note: As I said, I'm too eager to update to pace myself, so here's chapter six. This one should make you all happy. It made me happy, but I am easily amused, so that's not a good comparison.

* * *

**6. GRADUATION**

Ebony took a deep breath, fisting and un-fisting her fingers as she walked past the gates to a place where the sign read 'To-Oh Uni. Testing Center.' This was where she was to take the entrance exam that would hopefully get her into college. Her exam would be used as a way of seeing whether or not she was deserving of the scholarship she'd applied for. This exam was basically defining her whole future, so she absolutely could not afford to fail or perform at anything less than her best.

"Ok. Calm down, you idiot," Ebony scolded herself under her breath, locking her fingers together to maintain some level of control, "You can do this."

Folding back into herself mentally, Ebony strode into the building, feigning complete self-confidence. She settled herself into a seat, folding her legs to sit cross-legged like she always did. Some more time passed before the bell rang and the proctor allowed them to start. Ebony read each question carefully and dug through her memory of all the books she'd read over her life since she first learned how to read. Her eyes widened a bit before her brow furrowed slightly.

'_What's this? Everyone always says entrance exams are hard and scary as hell, but,'_ Her frown deepened slightly, _'these are truly rather simple. Huh!'_

"You there…number 162. Sit properly."

The sound of the proctor's voice startled her somewhat and she glanced over instinctively, seeing the man reprimanding this 'number 162.'

'_We've been reduced to numbers. Joy,'_ Ebony trilled sarcastically in her head as she looked to the one he was speaking of.

What she saw was a bit of a shock. The person sitting there had his toes curled over the lip of the long desk he was sitting at and was holding his pencil at its end with his index and thumb fingers. He wore a simple white, long-sleeved shirt and faded blue jeans, both of which were quite wrinkled and looked to be a size or two too big for him. His skin was so white that it could almost rival hers, though his was surely due to a lack of sun. His midnight black hair was longer than most males and in a state of complete disarray, defying gravity in some places only to submit to it in others. His face was longer and more angular than the majority of everyone else, so he couldn't be of Japanese ancestry, at least not enough to show in his physical features.

His eyes seemed to be his most striking feature, though.

She had never seen such eyes before. They were quite large and seemed to be open to their limits, giving him an expression of perpetual astonishment or fear. Dark circles marked his lower lids, indicating that he rarely slept.

'_Who is he?'_ Ebony wondered…

While Ebony continued to observe the strange man, said man was busy observing someone as well.

'_So, he's spotted me,'_ L met Light's stare as calmly as ever, curious to see if he could find anything new from now personally seeing the boy. He didn't expect to find anything concrete, but anything at all was good by this point in the game.

With a look into his eyes, L became even more certain that Yagami Light was Kira. His eyes were too calculating, his behavior too innocent. He molded himself into what normal people wouldn't find the least bit suspicious.

Luckily, L wasn't in the least bit normal.

He decided to end the staring contest when Light turned away from him, probably writing off his presence entirely. That suited him just fine. He knew that Light wouldn't want anything to do with him unless he proved himself as someone noteworthy of the young genius. That would fit his profile to a T, the profile of a childish person who had to win at everything. Such people tended to be rather arrogant and think themselves above the lesser mortals they came across over the course of their lives.

It wouldn't be too difficult at all for him to show that he was indeed noteworthy – more than noteworthy – given what he had planned in April. Perhaps he would think of it as a congratulation gift for being accepted into To-Oh. L almost smiled at the thought…

-oooOooo-

Ebony fisted her fingers tightly in her lap, trying to avoid biting her nails anymore since there wasn't much left to bite. Any more and she'd rip the nails straight from the nail bed and start bleeding, not something she wanted. She was gnawing on her lower lip instead, feeling her body shaking slightly.

She _hated_ being in such a big crowd. All the chairs and students around her felt far too close and there was nothing she could do but wait out this stupid thing. She wouldn't have been here at all had she not felt obligated to and she very much wished that she could have been so bold as to skip.

"Next, we have the freshman address," Announced the slightly balding, out of shape, bespectacled man at the podium, "Our freshman representative, Yagami Light."

"Here," The bronze haired genius stood from his seat, making his way to the stage calmly.

"Our second freshman representative, Ryuga Hideki."

A lanky man with wild black hair stood from his seat as well, following Light with his hands in his jeans pockets and his posture less than perfect.

"Huh? There's two this year?" A young man with glasses questioned aloud in a low voice. He was sitting just in front of Ebony, so she tuned her ears in, "Did he say 'Ryuga Hideki'? Like, the pop idol?"

'_Pop idol?'_ Ebony frowned. She had no clue who they were talking about.

"As if that pop idol could get into To-Oh," His friend scoffed, "Come on."

"Oh…yeah. Wow, he's nothing like _that_ Ryuga Hideki, for sure," He gave a weird glance at the man named Ryuga Hideki. Ebony looked up too, surprised to see the bizarre number 162 climbing the stage steps to stand next to Light as he gave his speech.

Turning away from the conversation since it was all about judging this poor guy when they hadn't even spoken to him, Ebony skimmed her eyes over the rest of the auditorium and its people, using that to distract herself.

It was a relief when the ceremony was over, finally freeing her of that confinement of hundreds of bodies. Ebony stood on shaky limbs and hurried from the building. She took a deep, steadying breath once she was free, welcoming the fresh air and sunlight…

…Only to bump into someone.

She was steadied by a lanky arm, her hand clamping reflexively on their shoulder. She looked up into the bottomless abyss that was number 162, Ryuga Hideki's, black eyes.

"S-sorry!" She quickly regained her footing and he let go of her, "I didn't see you."

"Yes. That is apparent," He replied. She hadn't noticed before, but his voice was nice. Deep and listless, betraying nothing of his thoughts, "You seem quite shaken. Are you well?"

"Yes. Yes, I'm fine," Ebony fidgeted with the silver charm hanging from a chain earring in her right ear, "I'm not used to being in crowds."

"Neither am I," L replied.

"Really? You didn't seem it," Ebony remarked and smiled at him, "Lucky you. I'm Ebony, by the way."

"Ryuga," Both looked over to a tall, elderly man standing by a black, English-style car. Ebony could hear other students whispering stuff about how he was both super intelligent and super rich in envious, spiteful tones. Why was it that people resented you if you happened to be well off financially and highly intelligent? It didn't seem very fair, "We should get going."

'_I know that voice,'_ Ebony recalled, _'He sounds just like that man Watari who can contact L,'_ She looked at Ryuga again, _'Matsuda said Watari could contact L. So if that man is Watari, and he's talking to Ryuga, Ryuga must be L. It only makes sense that way…'_

"It was nice meeting you, Ebony-san," Ryuga said, snapping her from her thoughts.

"You too," She grinned, "See you around campus, Ryuga-san."

L watched her for a moment before climbing into the car, Watari shutting the door behind him. His thumb was immediately at his mouth, the gears in his head turning incessantly.

How funny that, in his search for Light's old student, she should just fall into his arms, quite literally. Now that he knew where to look, gaining her cooperation shouldn't be too difficult. However, L was certain that there was something about her that seemed very familiar, though he had never met her before. But what could it be…?

L then noticed something peculiar. Something was off in the air of the car. He looked around for a moment before his gaze settled on his right arm, the one he'd used to keep the white haired girl from falling over after she'd walked into him. He raised his wrist to his face and sniffed the fabric that covered his forearm, smelling what seemed to be sweets and pastries…

It suddenly hit him! The mysterious music and scent in the park from months ago! Now that he went back over her voice, it was highly likely that her voice could produce the sounds he'd heard, at least an 87 percent possibility. The scent clinched it, though. That lovely girl must have been the one singing that night and the scent he'd picked up must have been hers.

L then paused and went over that last thought again.

'Lovely'?

Well, he supposed it was only natural to think such a thing, as the girl was quite beautiful, her peculiar coloring seeming to accent it rather than hinder it. Her eyes were on the large side like his and though she had more angular features uncharacteristic of those Japanese, her face held a softness to it that made her seem younger than she was. Her curly hair reminded him very much of sugar since it glimmered in the light much like the sweet substance he was constantly consuming. She was quite small, but not terribly skinny, nor did she lack in the attributes that identified her gender.

Overall, he concluded that she was quite a beautiful young woman and that it only made sense to acknowledge it.

"Ryuzaki," Watari's voice pulled him from his musings, "I recognize that young girl you were talking to. She is definitely Ebony, the one who brought Yagami Soichiro those apples to give to his son back in December."

"I see. This is good," L rolled that around in his head. This girl would be able to give him the in he needed, give him an unbiased opinion like others couldn't due to their liking of the boy. But that thing about apples too…Kira had said Shinigami only eat apples…

He would have to approach her soon…

* * *

Author's Note: Yay! They have officially made contact! I told you things would be speeding up soon. I can't wait to hear your thoughts on this. Did I make them meet ok? Let me know by clicking that wonderful 'review' button. That'll make me even happier!

-HaleyJo


	7. Not Any Form of Feline

Author's Note: I am so happy that everyone else is happy with this story! I know I keep saying that, but I can't help it. I'm really proud of it and it's nice to have something I'm proud of be received so well. I can't stop grinning and it's hurting my cheeks!

* * *

**7. NOT ANY FORM OF FELINE**

Ebony grunted slightly as she readjusted her grip on the tower of books in her arms. She was carrying enough that she couldn't see over them, forcing her to have to try to peek around the stack as often as she could. Her fingers were starting to get sore and the books' balance wasn't too good.

College was a bit harder than she'd anticipated. All the books she was carrying were for two papers she'd needed to write and now she was trying to get them back to the college library. But the task was not going well at all, especially since she was yawning every fifteen seconds.

"Ow!"

Ebony stumbled as the books went flying, scattering everywhere over the pavement. She'd walked right into someone _again_! Why was she always doing that?!

"Sorry," Ebony bent down to gather her books, surprised to see another hand coming to assist. She followed the hand to wrist to forearm, elbow up to shoulder, skimming up the curve of the cheek, coming eye-to-eye with…

"Hello, Ebony-san," L greeted her.

"Ry-Ryuga-san!" Ebony felt her face flush, "I'm sorry!"

"You seem to have a habit of running into people," L replied, though that wasn't necessarily true. He had seen her walking with that tower of criminal anthropology and psychology books and quite deliberately put himself in her way, "Do you require assistance in returning these books?"

"You don't have to do that," Ebony began restacking the books, "I can get it."

"There is no doubt in that fact," L stated simply, making another pile, "However, the process would be much simpler if you were to have help."

"Do what you will," Ebony conceded, allowing him to carry some of her books as they walked to the library together, "Thank you."

"You're welcome," L studied her carefully as they walked, noting how the circles beneath her eyes were darker than they'd been the last time they'd spoken, "Are you not feeling well?"

"What? No, I'm fine," Ebony replied, "Why do you ask?"

"The circles under your intriguing eyes are darker than they were yesterday," L elaborated, "Are mind troubles disrupting your sleep?"

"Mm, a bit," Ebony sighed. He seemed to actually care and not just making small talk, though him saying her eyes were intriguing was a bit strange. She used her bare foot to open the library door and her back to keep it open so L could walk past her, deciding to just let the comment slide, "What about you? You look like the last time you slept was sometime in the last century."

L looked at her for a moment before her face flushed again.

"Sorry," Ebony ducked her head, thinking she had offended him. When she peeked back up, she saw what seemed to be humor in his dark eyes even though his deadpan expression didn't change. She felt her face grow warmer.

"You didn't offend me, Ebony-san," L said, "Most people don't talk to me freely."

"Me neither. And call me Ebony," She smiled a little as she adjusted her grip on the books, "Ebony-san sounds…weird."

"No one talks to you?" L questioned as he helped her heft the books into the return box, "That must be lonely."

"Sometimes," Ebony shrugged, flexing her fingers that were very thankful to be rid of their previous burden, "There are things that can make it better, though."

"Cake."

"Huh?" Ebony cocked her head to the side, giving him a look of complete confusion as though she was wondering if she'd heard him wrong.

"That is something that can make emotions feel better," L elaborated, "Cake."

Ebony giggled, "Yeah. I suppose so," They stepped out of the library and she smiled up at him, "It was nice talking to you, but I gotta run. I'll see you later."

"Yes. I suppose you will," L allowed this encounter to come to a close for now. It wouldn't be a good move to push someone who wasn't accustomed to social interactions. She waved at him cheerily before trotting off, her sugar hair bouncing against her back.

'_I've moved in closer to Ebony,'_ L walked away from the college library, both hands stuffed in the pockets of his jeans, _'Tomorrow, I shall do the same to you, Yagami Light.'_

-oooOooo-

L walked from the classroom in which he had completely ignored the professor. There was nothing they could teach him that he didn't already know, and he wasn't in college for any sort of degree. He was only here to observe his prime suspect, Yagami Light, so his social reputation or academic performance here were completely irrelevant.

"Uh, hi!"

L turned to the side, having to drop his gaze to meet the petal pink eyes of Ebony. She was smiling pleasantly and holding a white box in her little hands. Her clothing today consisted of a wide-necked, knee-length dress over ankle-length leggings. The sleeves went to her elbows and both the dress and leggings were black. Black seemed to dominate her wardrobe.

"Hello, Ebony-san," L greeted her, curious as to why she'd approached him voluntarily. His gaze moved to the box as she held it out to him.

"Cake," She explained, "Thanks for helping me with my books last Tuesday."

"Oh. Thank you," L allowed her to place the box in his hands, but his suspicious nature kicked in. If she was close to Yagami Light and knew he was Kira, he could have put her up to this to possibly poison him now that he knew he was L. This would be the perfect way for him to kill him without having any evidence pointing his way. He looked up to her, "Would you share it with me, Ebony-chan?"

"Sure," Ebony followed him into the cafeteria, where they picked up some plates, forks, and napkins before choosing a table outside to sit down at. She opened the box he set down and cut them each a slice, only noticing that he was sitting oddly when she handed him his cake.

'_He's…crouching in his chair,'_ Ebony found herself smiling. She'd never come across someone who was unashamed to sit however they pleased. It was nice to see.

"You're studying the criminal mind," L stated, making Ebony snap back into focus as she settled in her cross-legged position across from him, "All of your books were of psychology and mental defects."

"Yeah. Not just criminals, though. Anybody," Ebony dug her plastic fork into the cake and took a bite, swallowing before continuing, "I'm thinking about becoming a shrink, helping victims of major traumas and such. What about you? What're your plans in life?"

"Law enforcement," L replied. There was no way she could figure out anything from that. Of course, L didn't know that she already suspected that he was L. He then took a bite of the cake, his wide eyes widening further with recognition, "This is good. You work in a small bakery."

"What makes you say that?" Ebony asked, her muscles tensing slightly. This guy was way smarter than he let on. Of course, if he was L, that was to be expected.

"This cake has similar qualities to cake I have gotten from a small bakery not too far away from here. You also smell like sweets and pastries," L elaborated, eating more cake, "You are quite talented."

"Thank you," Ebony flushed and used eating as an excuse to avoid looking at him.

"Do you support Kira?"

"I'm sorry?" Ebony's eyes snapped back up to his.

"There are cakes at the bakery that bare Kira's name, and the style is clearly yours," L explained, "Do you support Kira?"

"…I…I've done my best to stay as far from it as possible," Ebony finally replied, licking her fork clean, "That is merely a business venture. Those who support Kira will buy them, and it hasn't impacted the sales at all, so no one bothers me about it much."

L wondered if she was planning on giving him a straight answer sometime in the near future. As though she'd read his mind, Ebony sighed in a resigned manner.

"I do believe that there are criminals who deserve to die for the crimes they've committed, the people they've hurt and ruined," Her eyes flashed up to his, slightly surprising him with their intensity, "But Kira has also killed innocent people. People who had families, people who maybe left loved ones all alone with their deaths. Kira thinks he's God, but he's just an immature twit who was been handed a terrible power."

"Hm. You seem to feel rather strongly in this matter," L mused. He studied her face very carefully, and she seemed to genuinely feel these things.

"Why are you asking, anyway?" Ebony questioned as L cut himself another slice of cake, "Most people refuse to talk about it like it's religion," L placed another forkful in his mouth and spoke.

"Well, to put it simply," L paused to swallow, "You seem to have a deep insight in things, a unique mind to looking forward to consequences even if they don't involve you in any way, and you are strong in your opinions to the point that none can manipulate you into changing them. For getting a high score on the entrance exams, that proves that you are quite intelligent-"

"How do you know my score?" Ebony interrupted him suddenly. L's toes fidgeted with each other in irritation of being cut off like that.

"I looked it up."

"Hm," Ebony accepted that, "But that doesn't make me overly intelligent. I just read a lot a lot."

'_A lot a lot?'_ L was curious as to why she'd repeated herself.

"Emphasis," She said, reading his mind again, "I've spent a good deal of my time in libraries, so-"

"Then you have an exceptional memory," L cut her off this time, seeing that she seemed to dislike being interrupted as much as he did, "You also see things from a woman's point of view, which is something the police force has little of."

"Where are you going with this?" Ebony asked, digging into her second slice of cake. She raised a white brow when L leaned slightly toward her, dropping his voice to almost a whisper.

"I am L."

Ebony stared at him for a long time, her eyes growing wider and wider. The only thing that seemed to be moving was the wind that ruffled their hair around. L had just come up and told her he was L? What in the world?

"Despite your startled expression," L said, leaning away again to continue eating his cake, "you do not seem surprised by my identity so much as by my admission."

Ebony felt her face turn a bit red and she looked down at her cake, almost feeling guilty.

"Well, I kind of recognized Watari-san's voice from the police station. If he was Watari and was talking to you, it only made sense…"

"See? You are quite intelligent," L stated, curious of but disregarding the further reddening of her angel's face, "Not many would put such things together, not to mention recall someone's voice from months ago in a casual situation of such brevity."

"Um, I know this is going to make me sound completely incompetent, but it's because I've never paid attention to the real world much," Ebony fidgeted with a white curl slightly, shifting the subject. She seemed to hate receiving praise, "What exactly do you do as L? I saw that broadcast you made against Kira, so I know you aim to catch him, but I still don't really know what you do."

"I am a detective," L responded, surprised that she didn't know this. She knew of Watari, so how did she not know what his role was…?

"…Ok…But why tell _me_?" Ebony asked.

"Honestly, I was hoping for your help in the investigation," L said, shocking her yet again, "The characteristics I mentioned previously could be an invaluable asset to the case."

"Hm," Ebony ate more cake, flipping her fork between her fingers as she stared at it, thinking hard. She looked up at him again after a moment, "I don't know how much I could contribute. And I don't think I'd really be able to give much time to it. I'm in this school on a very strict scholarship, so I can't afford to miss any of my classes. I can't afford to go to this school without the scholarship, so losing it is not an option for me."

"I wouldn't worry about that," L replied, sounding quite confident, "You can come in whenever you have the time. I plan for Yagami Light to do the same."

"Light-san?" Ebony frowned. Why was he wanting Light to work with him?

L noted how she used his given name rather than his surname. He had been her tutor, so it wasn't too surprising, and it worked perfectly for him, "You know Yagami-kun personally?"

"Sort of," Ebony shifted in her seat, her half-eaten slice of cake forgotten, "He tutored me in math when I started attending his school. So, yeah, I know pretty much everyone in the Yagami family, but I'm not close to any of them."

"I see. Good," L concluded, drawing a confused face from Ebony that he could only describe as 'adorable', "Less chances to offend."

"I don't offend easily," Ebony muttered stubbornly, poking at the cake on her plate. She sighed, "I'm sorry, but I don't think I can help. Not with college going on. It would be a lot of walking around when I should be studying."

"Where exactly do you live, Ebony-chan?" L asked, curious about her 'walking around' comment.

"Are you some psycho stalker, or something?" Ebony narrowed her eyes at him suspiciously, but L could see the traces of teasing in her eyes.

"You don't believe that, so why are you attempting to avoid answering my question?" L countered her teasing.

Ebony pressed her lips together, setting her fork down so her right hand could fiddle with the holster chained about her slender hips. She made a humming noise and she tilted her head back to look up at the tops of the trees nearby. Instinctive defensiveness kicking in, she glanced over at L, her voice coming out flat and cold.

"You're supposedly the genius detective, correct?" Ebony asked, raising one white brow at him, "Shouldn't you be able to figure such things out despite my keeping them to myself?"

L was slightly taken aback, unprepared for the sudden hostility. Now that was incredibly interesting, this dormant side of her normally quiet and polite personality. Such contrasts were usually found in those who were accustomed to hiding things. What else was this girl hiding?

"Perhaps I will," L replied smoothly, "Especially now that you have piqued my curiosity."

"You've heard of curiosity killing the cat, Ryuga-san?" Ebony asked, placing more cake in her mouth. L did the same, proceeding to speak around his food.

"Then I am very fortunate not to be any form of feline."

* * *

Author's Note: I know the title of the chapter is weird, but I couldn't help it. I thought it was funny!

**LittleKittyShaoMao:** Thank you so much. I'm glad the flow of the story works for you. Your review was awesome since it pointed out specific things. Lets me know what I need to keep doing unlike other reviews that just say 'Great job, update soon.' You rock!

**IvoryCrayon: **Ha! That is funny! She's Ebony and you're Ivory. Together you make an awesome piano! I'm glad I made how L would notice a girl believable. It made sense to me for him to try to brush it off all scientificy like that. That's his form of denial, I think.

**sun-sun kat:** I'm glad my updating pace has appeased you. The updates will probably stay pretty fast until I catch up to myself. Ha! I said I'd catch up to myself! That's funny!

**Wolf:** Don't worry. I'm not going to eject Light from the story. He's important to the story too since without him there'd be no story. No worries. I mostly know what I'm doing.

Thanks to all who reviewed. Reading all your reviews makes me smile! Please continue to do so. You all are part of the system that feeds my story. Without you, I'd never post it. You inspire my fingers to work themselves over the keyboard until they are so sore I wish my heart would stop beating since the pulse just makes them throb worse.

-HaleyJo


	8. Blackmail

Author's Notes: Here's chapter eight. I'm just going nuts with this story! I figured just the name of the chapter would be interesting, so I wanted to post it quickly.

* * *

**8. BLACKMAIL**

Ebony licked the orange Tootsie-Roll Pop she held between her fingers, her right hand curled around the handle of her blue, wheeled backpack. Her talk with Ryuga Hideki, L, whoever the hell he was, still unnerved her a bit, even though it was two days ago and she hadn't really interacted with or seen him since. She wasn't used to talking to anyone voluntarily unless there was a very specific need for it.

"_Honestly, I was hoping for your help in the investigation."_

What did he mean? How could she really help in catching Kira, a person who killed whoever he deemed had to die? She couldn't help him, she couldn't help anyone. She could barely even help herself. She was just some freaky-looking girl who happened to have a good memory and could bake, that was all.

She set her backpack by a tree, plopping down to sit beside it in the dirt. Her head leaned back against the rough bark as her eyes searched the sky as though looking for some kind of answer to suddenly appear before her and give her life some meaning. It was always nice to see the stars from the park…

"Ah, I see. You don't live anywhere at all."

Ebony let out a quickly suppressed scream and jumped to her feet, swinging her fist around only to have it caught. She looked at the hand that almost completely encased her tiny fist, too worried to look at the person. Her brow furrowed slightly as she recognized the hand. Long and pale, almost femininely slender but still obviously male due to the size.

"Not exactly the friendliest greeting I've ever received, Ebony-chan."

"Ryuga-san?" Ebony tugged at her hand and he let it go, waiting for a moment before she looked up at him. His wide eyes looked somewhat scary in the dark, "Why are you here?"

"I believe that you invited me, so to speak," L replied. Ebony said she did no such thing, but L held up a silencing finger, "You are the one who challenged me to find where you live. I have done so."

Ebony bit her lip, unsure of what to do since his logic made sense. She _had_ invited him, in a way. But no one knew that she was homeless, not even the Yagamis knew despite how she had frequented her home in earlier months. No one ever bothered to ask, so she never bothered to give any answers.

"Ok," She said slowly, feeling very threatened for whatever reason. His wide-eyed stare might have had something to do with it, "Now what?"

"Well, you are still but seventeen, correct?" L inquired, seeing her slowly nod her head, "That makes you a minor, and thus a ward of Japan, which means that it is completely illegal for you to be living on your own. And being a law abiding and enforcing person, I cannot allow you to continue flitting about like this when I can do something about it."

Ebony's jaw dropped, her brain stopping for a second. Then her jaw snapped shut so fast her teeth clicked and she pointed an accusatory finger in his direction, "You're blackmailing me!"

"Yes. Yes, I am," L acknowledged her claim, amused by the open disbelief and rage in her face, "As I stated before, I want your help in this investigation."

Ebony's hands curled into fists at her sides. She was normally polite and quiet, but this man was somehow hitting all her buttons and dragging out her nasty temper. But this Ryuga Hideki or whatever he called himself had her freedom in his hands. If he told anyone that she was homeless and living wherever she could find a somewhat safe place to sleep for the night, she would be dragged off into the foster system and have to answer questions she didn't want to be asked.

She was under his thumb and she didn't like it one bit.

"Ok, what is it that you're wanting, Ryuga?"

"You have stated that the only thing keeping you from assisting is your frequent movement taking away from your much needed study time," L stated, his eyes roaming over her face carefully, watching her reactions and just watching her in general, "If you stay with myself and Watari, you can be close to the investigation as well as have somewhere safe to live and study. And the legal system never has to know a thing since Watari could pose as your guardian for anything that may come up that could require you to need one."

Ebony seriously considered that last bit. Having a guardian could prove extremely beneficial to her, and Watari seemed like a kind man. Ryuga….now she just wasn't sure what to make of him yet other than the glaring fact that he was intriguingly weird.

"I get the feeling that I don't really have a choice in the matter," Ebony sighed, looking up at the eccentric detective. Even with his Hunchback of Notre Dame gait, he towered over her by several inches, "Fine. I'll come with you, but I probably won't make the greatest housemate."

"That's fine," L began leading her out of the park she had intended to sleep in that night, hearing the wheels of her backpack and the faint slap of her bare feet against the pavement behind him, "You drag around everything you own in your backpack?"

"Pretty much," Ebony replied. Since she was going to be living with this guy, she may as well try to get on good terms with him no matter how much she wanted to whack him in the back of the head. A brief grin flashed to and from her face as she resolved to finding an excuse to do so as quickly as possible, "It's not like I have anywhere safe to leave it, and I'd rather not have my things stolen just from being careless."

"Understandable," L said, moving his eyes to look at her again. He really couldn't help himself. His gaze landed on the pendant she was wearing and the holster chained about her hips, "Both your necklace and holster bear the same symbol. Are you religious?"

"Hm? Oh, no," Ebony fiddled with her holster, "These belonged to my mother. They're all I have of her."

L observed the trinkets carefully, seeing that it would have been odd had she really been religious. The necklace was a silver cross hanging from a strip of leather buckled about her slime throat. What made it odd was the circled star where the bars of the cross met: a pentagram. Rippled lines came from the pentagram to each end of the bars. The same pattern was on the black holster, the top, vertical bar of the cross snapping into the pentagram to keep it closed. L knew this since he saw her deposit the clean stick of her Tootsie-Roll Pop inside it until she could throw it away properly.

Ebony was somewhat awed when L led her to a fancy hotel, one of those ones that she never would have thought she'd ever enter, let alone stay in. She felt incredibly out of place, that feeling made worse by the odd stares she got directed at her hair and bare feet, and stepped closer to L out of reflex born from discomfort. It wasn't as bad when they got in the elevator and the tension was almost completely gone by the time L led her to the room he was staying in with Watari.

"Hello, young lady."

"Hello, Watari-san," Ebony smiled shyly at the elderly man, seeing his slight surprise at her knowing who he was without introduction, "I recognize your voice from at the police station. Remember? I ran into you."

"Ebony-chan seems to have a habit of running into people," L said as he walked past her into the hotel room. He walked from the door to the sitting room, proceeding to curl up in his favorite chair, "She has run into me twice already."

"Oi! No making fun," Ebony growled at him, "I can vanish from right under your nose before you can snap your fingers should I want to," Ebony crossed her arms defiantly, "Even if you are the great detective L, you'd never be able to find me."

"So you say," L countered, though he did file that little fact away. She was obviously experienced in vanishing since she sounded so confident, "Is Ebony-chan challenging me again?"

"More like warning," Ebony shrugged as she set her backpack in an out-of-the-way corner of the room and proceeded to sit beside it, "I'd rather not have to go through the trouble of disappearing since I'm in college now, but I will if I must, so please don't make me."

"We have no intention of making you give up your future, Miss Ebony," Watari decided that now as a good time to step in on the conversation before anything untactful was said, which was likely to happen since the two were already bickering and the girl hadn't been in the room for even a full minute yet, "Would you like to see where you'll be staying for now?"

"For now?" Ebony wondered.

"For safety's sake, we move from hotel to hotel every so often," L explained as Ebony stood and tugged up the black handle for her bag.

"Mm. So Kira won't see the same police men going to the same hotel all the time?"

"Correct," L said, mildly impressed with her quick understanding. She refuted his claim of her being very intelligent, but this was proof of his evaluation, "But we won't be moving so much that it will interfere with your studies."

"I see. But I'll also have to be able to get to work," Ebony said as she passed L's chair, "I can't really afford to get fired, either."

"You certainly worry a lot," L stated, "Perhaps that's why your hair is white."

Before she or anyone could stop it, Ebony delivered a harsh knock to the back of L's head. L shook his head a bit and rubbed the spot where she'd struck him, turning a mild pout in her direction. She hadn't really hurt him, but she'd hit him hard enough to leave a slight sting.

"Stop making fun of me," Ebony said. Instead of the almost teasingly angry tone she'd used when he'd made the comment about her running into people, this one was darker, more even, glaringly out of place when coming from such a pretty, mild-mannered young girl, "I'm already aware that I look like a freak."

L stared after her, a bit confused by her statement. She thought she looked like a freak? Surely she noticed how men looked at her wherever she went, didn't she? When Watari returned, L turned his vaguely curious gaze to the elderly man. He was experienced with handling many different types of children. Maybe he could provide some insight into Ebony's brain.

"I would be more careful with my words if I were you, Ryuzaki," Watari said, knowing what L wanted, "Children can be very cruel, so she was probably harassed quite badly during her childhood. Try to avoid comments regarding her appearance, alright?"

L nodded once, "I will try."

* * *

Author's Note: Yay! New chapter. You know the drill. Please review!

-HaleyJo


	9. New Kira

Author's Note: Now that they're living together, what do you think will happen? Oh, duh! It's my job to tell you that! I knew that. So please enjoy the new chapter and please excuse the manga dialogue. It's necessary.

* * *

**9. NEW KIRA**

Ebony hurried along the empty street, cursing Leiko in her head. The damn woman had caused a huge mess at the bakery and then bailed, leaving Ebony to clean it up. And being the kind girl that she was, she had stayed to clean up the mess despite it not being hers. She hoped she wasn't sending L and Watari – probably just Watari – into conniptions by being so late, which was why she was carrying a white box in her hands. She had stayed even later to make L a fresh cake as a peace offering of sorts, hoping that would keep him from being too mad at her.

"Oh, he is going to be so mad at me!" Ebony groaned as she pushed her feet to move as fast as they could without running. She frowned a little at her eagerness to please the irritating man, but she couldn't help it. She liked helping people and doing things for them, and L was no exception.

She was so out of it that she didn't pay the slightest bit of attention to the large TVs that dotted the city, each displaying a four-letter name crudely drawn in gothic print.

_Kira_.

Her feet moved her in front of some TV station she didn't know, but the name read Sakura TV. She walked past the window and continued on her way, completely oblivious to what she had just done.

It was immediately noticed by someone else, though.

L was watching the TV with the rest of the task force minus Yagami Soichiro since he was still recovering in the hospital. There was something about this Kira that didn't make sense, and it put him on edge. Not that the broadcast itself wasn't doing that already, but that was making it worse. And worse still, he couldn't think over it now with all this going on.

L then leaned a bit closer, watching a young girl with curly white hair walk across the front of Sakura TV, clutching a white box securely in her little hands.

'_Ebony-chan?'_ L mused, biting down on his thumb, _'Does she not realize how close she could be to Kira? And why is she so late?'_

L couldn't think on that for long either as anchormen started dropping dead just as this Kira said they would. Everyone started panicking, all trying to reach Sakura TV at the same time to get them to stop this broadcast before things got even worse. Ukita ran out the door to stop them himself before anyone could tell him not to. L felt his stomach squirm, his brilliant mind already 96 percent certain that Ukita would not be coming back and his scent of cigarettes would be gone forever once it worked its way out of the hotel room air.

"Hi, Watari…Ryu…" The hotel door opened again some five minutes after Ukita left, revealing the small figure of Ebony. Three pairs of eyes turned to look at her, two belonging to the task force members she'd had yet to meet and one belonging to an elderly man. Their faces were grim as she'd ever seen them and she turned her cardkey in her hand nervously, "Ok, who died?"

Before anyone could answer or question her presence, a female reporter's voice rang out from one of the three TV's speakers.

"_This just in! Someone is reported to have collapsed in front of Sakura TV!"_

Ebony approached the TV, her pink eyes wide as they locked on the screen. She set the white box down on a nearby table and perched atop the right arm of L's cushy chair. Blinking, she leaned in curiously, lifting a finger to point at the screen.

"Who is-"

"Ukita!" A tall man with an afro rushed to the screen, his gut dropping from his body, "Oh my…God! Kira got him?!"

The same man suddenly turned to dash out of the room, but was stopped by L's sudden command, "Forget it, Aizawa-san. Where do you think you're going?"

"To Ukita, where else?" Even through the dark, L noticed Ebony stiffen slightly at the dark tone Aizawa was using, "And I'm going to get those damn videos and bring them back here."

"If you go over there now," L just barely glanced at the taller man over his shoulder, peering through his thick bangs, "you'll only get killed."

"You trying to tell me to sit here and watch television, Ryuzaki?!" Aizawa turned to glare at the eccentric detective still hunched in his seat. Ebony's nerves pricked under her skin, her muscles tensing in an instinctive response to the strain building in the room. She tried to keep her focus on the three TV screens in front of her, but that was proving difficult.

"I'm trying to tell you to calm down and be realistic," L responded, "I want to stop that video as much as you do. And if we manage to confiscate the entire package, the way it was sent, there's a good chance we can track Kira down. But if Ukita was murdered by Kira," L turned back around to stare at the TV screen, "whoever goes there now will end up dead, too."

"This means his phony police ID didn't help him!" Aizawa argued, "Kira knows our real names, has to. There's no other explanation!"

"But wouldn't Kira have it easier to kill you all now instead of doing all this?" Ebony asked, hoping to alleviate some tension. It was making her head ache.

"Yes, but from seeing this," L gestured to the TV before placing his hand back on his knee, "I'd have to conclude that seeing their face alone would be enough. All I can say for sure at this time is Ukita-san was killed because he went over there. It happened before the other networks started reporting from in front of Sakura TV."

"So Kira's there?" Ebony wondered aloud, "Wouldn't that be too risky?"

"It is possible that he merely set up surveillance," L responded. Most of him was under extreme stress from this whole situation, but the part that wasn't bothered by negative emotions or thoughts was enjoying speaking with someone who could pick up on his deductions without him having to spoon-feed them.

"Well, if Kira's around there right now, that's all the more reason for us to go!!" Aizawa interjected.

"I'll say it again," L repeated, "If you go there now, you will be killed. Please understand."

"No, I don't understand…"

Aizawa suddenly stepped forward and grabbed L's shoulder in his anger. He almost was afraid he would break the frail-looking creature crouching in his seat, but that worry was quickly brushed aside by his angry grief, "Ukita might have been murdered!! By Kira!! I thought we were risking our lives to arrest that bastard!"

"Stop it!" Ebony punched Aizawa rather violently in the shoulder, but he did not relinquish his hold on the younger detective. Due to his rage, Aizawa didn't have any focus left to be amazed at the strength behind Ebony's blow. He was definitely going to have a rather nasty bruise soon.

"Risking your life," L breathed, his hand shooting out to grab Ebony's wrist when she made to hit Aizawa again, "and doing something that could easily rob you of your life are exact opposites."

Aizawa was about to protest further when he finally noticed how tightly L's other hand was gripping his leg. The tendons in his long hands stood out sharply in the dim light of the TV screens. The hand restraining Ebony was stressed as well as he focused on not hurting her with his grip.

"I understand your feelings, but please try to control yourself right now," L's voice was almost too soft for the other men to hear, though Ebony heard him easily since she was right beside him, "Ukita-san is dead…if you go over there and lose your life too, Aizawa-san…"

Aizawa released L's bony shoulder and took a step or two back, pacified now that he knew L was not as unaffected as his body language and voice led them to believe. L released Ebony's hand, confident that she wouldn't attack Aizawa again since he was no longer being hostile toward him. As he had expected, Ebony placed her hands back in her lap, turning back to the screen.

Ebony almost had a heart attack when a large bus suddenly crashed through the glass doors of the Sakura TV station, her body jerking visibly. L noted this and was intrigued by it. From his own observations of her, Ebony very rarely was emotionally startled by things, but she had been a bit wired since Aizawa had started yelling.

If someone asked him later he wouldn't be able to give an intelligible answer, but regardless, L reached out and gently touched the back of Ebony's little hand, surprised when the hand he touched flipped over and entwined their fingers tightly. Her hands seemed to be shaking and her breathing was a bit uneven. L allowed her to use his hand to anchor herself.

"Well," L mused, sticking the thumb of his free hand between his teeth, "That's certainly one way of entering without anyone seeing your face. But if Kira got Ukita-san, there's a good chance he's inside. If he's anywhere inside the lobby, this could be really risky."

"But who the hell is it?" Matsuda asked, "Someone on our side?"

"Well, it is a police vehicle," Aizawa offered.

"It's a police vehicle?" Ebony asked, unwilling to acknowledge the comfort she was getting from the warmth of L's hand against hers. Another police car suddenly appeared on the scene and Ebony felt her stomach drop, "I don't like this."

Ebony's eyes narrowed as she watched the two police men who'd hopped out of the car collapse on the spot. Her grip on L's hand tightened without her knowing it and L gently squeezed her hand in return, trying to help her cope with watching murder after murder right before her too-young eyes.

"Aizawa-san," L glanced up at the man standing behind Ebony, "You know Deputy Chief Kitamura's cell phone number, don't you?" Aizawa nodded, "Call him. If he picks up, please hand the phone over to me."

Aizawa handed the phone to L once Kitamura picked up. Ebony tried to listen in, but L was holding the phone up by his left ear, so she could only hear him.

"This is L. I have a request. There will be more officers driven to act on their own after seeing this broadcast," L was saying, "Unless strictly coordinated action is taken, we'll have a major tragedy on out hands."

Ebony glanced over when she heard a cell phone beeping, seeing Watari pick his phone from his pocket and check the caller ID, "It's Yagami-san."

"What? The boss?" Aizawa and Matsuda were taken aback. Wasn't he supposed to be recovering?

"Yes, thank you, Kitamura-san…No, wait. Please stay on the line," L was saying before he detangled his fingers from Ebony's and held his hand out to Watari, his fingertips accidentally grazing Ebony's cheek as they went by her face, "Watari. Call him back right away, and hand me the phone."

Since he was using his right, Ebony could clearly hear Soichiro's distressed voice through the phone, _"This is Asahi! Get me Ryuzaki!"_

"Yagami-san, it's me," L responded, mildly impressed by how Soichiro remembered to use his false name even under such circumstances, "So it was you in that armored van."

"_That's right…I just couldn't take it anymore…But I've seized the tapes, all of them. I'm bringing them over. Where are you right now?"_

"But what about your condition?" L asked. He didn't want Soichiro to have another heart attack right after recovering from one. He noticed Ebony leaning closer to listen, her sugar hair tickling his neck.

"_I'm fit as a fiddle. Never felt better in my life."_

"That figures," Ebony stated, "People always feel most alive when they're walking a razor's edge."

"_A bigger concern is, how do I get out of here?"_ Soichiro continued, having not heard her, _"I assume the front of the building is dangerous, but maybe I'll be alright in that van?"_

"Hold on for a moment," L switched phones, "Deputy Chief, the one in the armored van was Yagami-san," L paused to listen for a moment before switching phones again, "Yagami-san, rest there for five minutes and then head out the front."

"What's in your head?" Ebony asked as L gave both phones back to their respective owners. She didn't protest when L took her hand back in his, weaving their fingers together again.

"Look and see," L gestured to the TV.

"Woah!" When she turned around, all she could see were police buses, huge blocks of dark cloth, shields, and helmets. Ebony stared at the human blockade L had orchestrated to keep Yagami Soichiro alive. This showed just how much L valued human life despite his social ineptitude, "This is amazing, Ryuzaki…"

Something about the awe in her voice caused a warm feeling to bloom somewhere in his chest despite the tragedy that had just occurred. L was accustomed to praise, but the praise was more directed toward his title rather than himself. Ebony was acknowledging him, though, not his title. It felt…

L shook his head. It wasn't important. What was important was this whole Kira fiasco, not a few unfamiliar sensations.

"Chief?" Matsuda's voice pulled him from his musings as the door opened about fifteen or so minutes later, revealing Watari helping Soichiro into the room.

"I'm sorry about taking things into my own hands like that, Ryuzaki," Soichiro apologized, "I let my emotions get the better of me."

"That's fine," L assured him. He took note of the circles beneath the older man's eyes, the increased amount of whites and grays streaking his hair that had been black before this whole Kira nightmare started. He had also lost a good deal of weight and looked like he was going to collapse at any moment.

"The videotapes, the envelope they came in, it's all in here," Soichiro said as he held up a bag with 'SAKURA TV' advertised along the bottom. L took the bag as Soichiro moved to the couch, "Let me lie down for a while…"

"Are you alright, Chief…?" Matsuda approached him, trying to help, "Maybe you ought to get back to the hospital."

'_Thank you, Yagami-san. What you did will not be in vain,'_ L vowed as he carefully lifted the envelope from the bag, _'An Osaka postmark…But Kira can control people's actions before they die. He could have sent this without going to Osaka himself…'_

"Aizawa-san. Could you take this over to forensics?"

"Sure," Aizawa took the evidence from the young man, "I know a lot of people there. I'm sure they'll do a great job."

After such a traumatic event, all the other officers agreed to go home when L said they should go and rest, be with their families. That left the room empty again with only L, Watari, and Ebony inside. Watari went about his business while L and Ebony watched the copies of the tapes together, neither saying a word except to thank Watari whenever he brought them anything. L did listen when Watari had to wrest an answer out of Ebony when he asked her what she wanted to eat for a very late dinner, but she was difficult about it as usual. The girl simply hated receiving things and seemed to hate asking for anything even more, a rare quality in a teenage girl, homeless or not.

"So Kira wants your face," Ebony mused after they finished the tapes, the sun just barely beginning to change the sky from black to the many colors of dawn. L tapped his fingers against his knee a few times while Ebony rolled her neck to get the stiffness to leave it after having had it in pretty much the same position for quite a long time now, "Since you're obviously never going to show your face to the world with the name L attached to it, what are you going to do?"

"Well, we're going to allow Sakura TV to broadcast tape four in the morning after speaking to the task force," L said, not looking at her as he dug his fork into a slice of the peace offering cake Ebony had brought back with her from the bakery that evening. He continued speaking before swallowing, "And then we will most likely be confronted with the world's nations demanding that I appear on TV in order to appease Kira."

"Mm, that wasn't an answer, Ryuzaki," Ebony frowned and sat up a bit more. Speaking with L seemed to bring out her somewhat aggressive behaviors, "I like thinking that I know at least a little bit about how that weird brain of yours works, and I'm pretty sure that if I'm finding this 'Kira's' behavior more than a little off, you should be too."

"So you noticed that, did you?" L was again impressed by this girl, "Yes. I too found this all a little strange. I don't believe that this is the same Kira that we've been dealing with up to this point."

"Ditto," Ebony flopped backwards on the couch, letting one arm fall back over her head, "Someone else has a power like Kira's now, but this one seems even more powerful. This one only needs a face rather than both a name and a face. This really sucks!"

"Agreed," L sighed, wondering how they were going to counter this new threat. Now he had another Kira to worry about and he didn't know who this one was.

L suddenly remembered something, his eyes glancing down to the dirt on her knees and slight scuffs on the heels of her hands. She claimed she tripped on her way back.

"One thing," L gestured her closer, speaking when she'd sat up and leaned forward, "Please do try to not be late coming back here again. It makes me worry."

"Why?" Ebony asked, her pride suffering a slight ding, "I can take care of myself."

"Be that as it may," L waved her words away, "I would still prefer it if you didn't take unnecessary risks by walking on your own after dark. The fact that you are incredibly aesthetically appealing unfortunately makes you a desirable target for attackers of many kinds."

Ebony blinked a few times, seeming to mouth out his words before a great deal of red stained her cheekbones, "Did you just say that I'm pretty?"

L went over his sentence again, "Yes, I suppose I did. Though, personally, I would have used a stronger adjective. 'Beautiful' would work better to describe your physical features, I believe."

From behind the doorway to the kitchen, Watari shook his head slightly, a smile on his wizened face. L had definitely taken a strong liking to this girl whether he was really aware of it or not. He suspected that he was, though, since he had confessed both that he worried for her and that he found her attractive. Watari was curious to see how exactly L would handle being attracted to a member of the opposite sex. He saw L as his son, and every father awaits the day their son falls in love.

* * *

Author's Note: L's falling in love! L's falling in love! It's so cute to watch because he's so endearingly awkward about it!

**sun-sun kat:** You knew she was homeless? Cool! I'm glad you liked how she hit L. I agree with you, sometimes the guy needs a good knock to the head. And don't worry. The odds of that happening again on multiple occasions are extremely high. Hee!

**SugarLandBabyGirl:** There are going to be many, many more chapters. I'm glad you've liked the story so far. It makes me smile!

**Mel1983: **I'm glad you're liking how I've been making L and Ebony interact with each other. That means a lot coming from you, who is so good at capturing the man beneath the detective L name. If you liked their interactions in chapter 8, you should be loving this one.

Please review. Reviews make me smile and update, which make you smile.

-HaleyJo


	10. A Riot

Author's Note: I didn't think people wouldn't be bothered by the manga dialogue. I'm glad to see that's not the case and that Ebony fit in real well. I'd worried about that too. Thank you all and please enjoy chapter 10. Oh yeah, and forgive the short length.

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**10. A RIOT**

Light chuckled darkly, thoroughly amused by this unexpected turn of events. His red-brown eyes glanced to the Shinigami standing to his left, "I told you the gods are on my side. This time, though…It's another god of death."

"Hyuk hyuk! Sure looks like it," Ryuk cackled through his sharp teeth, grinning at the 'Kira' display on the TV screen.

"Another Shinigami has come down to the human world, and that Shinigami's Death Note is in the hands of someone who endorses Kira. I think I can be pretty sure about that. And I'm the only one who knows that this Kira is fake," Light's grin widened at how wonderfully everything seemed to fall in his favor as he stood from his desk chair, "The question is, is he friend or foe? Well, either way, the real question is whether I can use him to my advantage or not."

Ryuk chuckled as he listened to Light speak, deducing the second Kira's obvious possession of the Shinigami eyes and irritated with how this new Kira had greatly tarnished Kira's name. He was speaking more to himself than to the tall, lanky creature acting as his roommate, but Ryuk didn't care as long as he was entertained. Light sure talked a lot, seemed to enjoy hearing himself speak. Humans had turned out to be more amusing than the dark Shinigami had originally anticipated when he'd deliberately dropped his Death Note, especially this particular bunch of humans he was playing with.

"I need to make contact with the fake Kira and control him," Light continued, not caring whether Ryuk was listening or not, "without letting him know my name or what I look like."

"Hyuk hyuk! That'll be a tough one, Light," Ryuk laughed at the young man's expense, "How will you be able to pull that one off?"

"That will depend on the fake Kira's next move," Light said as he sat on the edge of his bed, leaning his chin against the back of his wrist with his elbow propped up against his knee, "As long as the fake Kira doesn't do anything too stupid, tracking him down shouldn't be a problem.

"But something's bothering me," Light narrowed his eyes at the TV screen he had just switched off seeing as how the announcement had ended, "The girl that walked by the TV station just as all this was beginning. I'm pretty sure that was Ebony, since no one else in this city or even in this hemisphere has that curly white hair. The fake Kira had been killing anyone and everyone they could see going anywhere near the station, so why let her live? I'm glad she didn't die since she's almost like a little sister to me, but it doesn't make any sense for this Kira to have let her live when he was killing everyone else…"

Still standing by the corner of his desk, Ryuk did his best to hold in his mirth, not wanting to give away what could potentially make everything even more entertaining for him. Light now knew that excessive laugher from the Shinigami meant he knew something the young man didn't.

'_This is going to be a riot!'_

* * *

Author's Note: So that's chapter 10. Wimpy little thing, isn't it? Again, sorry for the brevity, but I know what I'm doing, trust me.

**LittleKittyShaoMao: **Thanks so much for your review! I've always enjoyed reading yours since you started reviewing my story. Yes, this story will be a long one, way more than just twenty chapters. It's kind of gotten away from me.

**sun-sun kat: **Right after you say you love the chapter lengths, I post this little tiny one. How ironic!

**Marisol Akyri: **I've read Before I Fade too. It's awesome! I'm glad my story will keep you satisfied after that one's over, but you should check out Mel1983's other work. It's amazing!

**Hao'sAnjul:** I know what you mean, but don't worry. She'll have emotional wig out moments from that later on. She kind of bottles things up and then wigs out when she's alone. That's just how she does things, I guess.

**IvoryCrayon:** Dang! Everyone loves how they held hands! That's one of my favorite parts too but still! I didn't realize the scene would be that popular! Makes me glad there's more of that on the way.

Thank you everyone for your wonderful reviews, and don't worry. I'll update again today to make up for this little chapter. Promise!

-HaleyJo


	11. Joining In

Author's Note: As I said, to make up for the mini chapter earlier, I'm posting another right now. I'll probably update yet again later. Who knows?

* * *

**11. JOINING IN**

The day after the fourth video was aired, all the task force but Yagami Soichiro returned to the hotel to await the decision of the world leaders after reviewing the information L had Soichiro bring them. Aizawa was a bit surprised to find that white haired girl from before curled up in one of the chairs, seeming to be asleep. They hadn't really paid her much attention last night due to Kira's fearsome broadcast, but her sudden presence was now noticed and being scrutinized with no answers in sight. He rubbed his upper arm slightly, remembering how he'd had to really think before he could recall how he'd gotten the large purple bruise marring the skin there. When both he and Matsuda sat down, the girl's vividly pink eyes snapped open and she sat up, wincing as she registered the bad crick in her neck from sleeping in such a position. They would have asked questions had the door not clicked open at that moment, Soichiro shutting it behind himself.

"How did it go, Chief?" Aizawa asked as he stood in respect for the other man.

"Just as I thought," Soichiro began as he lowered himself into a chair across from the couch Matsuda and Aizawa were sharing, "Ryuzaki, world leaders have talked it over among themselves and they're demanding that L, not a stand-in, but the real L, appear on TV," Soichiro's voice suddenly turned bitter, "After doing almost nothing to help with the investigation, they don't even try to come up with some alternative. Kira says 'jump', they ask 'how high?...'"

"Of course," Ebony grumbled from her seat as she massaged the seized up muscle in her neck, "Humans are cowardly, greedy creatures that panic too easily and go along with the masses in a heartbeat. I guess the decision makes sense since L is the one who challenged Kira and everything, but still…"

"Their decision is both right and reasonable," L stated, "If it is between the NPA Director-General and me."

"But…that means you'll…be," Matsuda couldn't bring himself to finish the sentence.

"What worries me more is that when I appear on TV, and I intend to do so…"

'_Liar,'_ Ebony rolled her eyes when no one was looking, _'You have no intention whatsoever to appear on TV as 'L'. It wouldn't hurt to just say that, you dork.'_

"…if Kira knows nothing about me," L continued, oblivious to Ebony's thoughts, "then even if it's really me out there, how do I get him to believe I'm L?" He wondered as he stuck more cake into his mouth.

He had a good point there. Ebony knew there was no way anyone would believe this slouching, sweets-obsessed, socially inept, unruly man was the famed detective L. They would expect some tidy old man, more like Watari, maybe.

"Well, I'll do what I can to make him believe me. But if I fail and police chiefs around the world get killed as a result…" L went on before swallowing his food, "That's what bothers me. It'll be quite hard, proving that I'm L…I really don't know how Kira intends to figure it out…"

"We still have three more days," Ebony offered from her seat, trying to be of some help, "I bet you could think up some way to avoid this whole thing by then."

"I will try," L promised and he speared more cake into his fork, his face suddenly like a sullen child's, "I don't want to die, either. It would be bad enough to be killed by Kira, but to die at the hands of an opportunist pretending to be Kira would really grate."

Every task force member but Ebony was shocked by this statement.

"What do you mean by that, Ryuzaki?!" Soichiro asked.

"It occurred to me as I was watching those videos…that this Kira is likely to be a fake," L held the fork between his teeth, seemingly staring into space again, "Or more precisely, a second Kira."

"A second Kira?!" Everyone gasped.

"Yes. I considered the possibility of his being an accomplice, but find that to be unlikely. Watching this first video is what made me think of it. The first video wasn't aired, but was made to convince Sakura TV that the sender was actually Kira. It was made to be viewed by Sakura staff only," L set down the first tape and stuck more cake in his mouth, "The envelope is postmarked April 13. It arrived at Sakura TV the next day, and three days after that the murders announced in the video took place."

"But if murders announced three days in advance actually happened," Matsuda chimed in, "I'd have to say that's pretty convincing…"

"I was not convinced that the sender was Kira," L stated. Ebony felt kind of bad for Matsuda. His inexperience and more laidback manner probably made him feel rather worthless when surrounded by so many talented people on a regular basis, "And Ebony-chan agrees with me."

"Why is that?" Soichiro turned to Ebony, which caused the others to in turn. Ebony felt her face flush slightly from the sudden unwanted attention, but spoke up anyway.

"It's just because the victims are so different from Kira's usual prey," Ebony stated, still working the knot out of her neck, using that as an excuse to look away, "TV celebrities caught with drugs? People merely exercising their right to free speech by badmouthing Kira? It didn't make sense. Ryuzaki told me that those this Kira went after were only fussed over in women's magazines and dumb tabloid shows Sakura TV airs all the time."

"Correct," L nodded, a strawberry speared by his fork hovering before his face, "This second Kira had to be careful to not predict the deaths of any criminals the real Kira could possibly kill before the second Kira's predictions. If that happened, the Sakura staff would have deemed the tapes and note fakes and tossed them aside, never to be aired."

"…But…maybe he deliberately used someone that TV people would know…" Matsuda started slowly before abandoning the thought, "Well, I guess that's pushing it…"

"Yeah, but I don't think we can definitely say it's a second Kira just from that," Aizawa agreed somewhat. That was a bit of a shocker since Matsuda was rarely agreed with.

"Ryuzaki," Soichiro said after thinking it over, "What's the probability that this is a second Kira?"

"This time, I'd say it's over 70 percent," L responded.

"Ooh! Big number," Ebony commented from her chair across from L, "That's new."

"I don't like his style," L went on more to himself than the others, that sullen child expression coming back, "It's not like Kira at all…"

"Explain, please," Ebony said. She knew already since L had discussed it with her before, but she knew the others were curious and it was sometimes hard to speak to L.

"The way the videos were made, it's just too sloppy," L sent a sort of disappointed glare to the tapes sitting in the table, "and I'm not only talking about the bad lettering."

Ebony grinned at that one. The writing _was_ pretty bad.

"It's the sound, too. He's playing back sound recorded on other equipment and taking it in through the video camera's mike. At places where I assume outside noise got in, he rewound the tape and did it over. Ordinarily, you would transfer the sound by connecting the tape recorder to the video camera with a cable. You wouldn't use the camera's mike. This is just too amateurish."

"Well that's mean," Ebony pouted, "Not everyone is a technology wizard."

"And then, making a TV network broadcast these tapes and using police chiefs as bargaining chips," L continued despite her irritating interruption, "It was obvious that doing things like that would arouse public hostility against him."

"And he killed innocent people," Ebony added in, ignoring the flat glare she received from L for interrupting him _again_, "The real Kira's probably pissed since he didn't want to make a perfect world by scaring the bejesus out of everyone. He wanted to have everyone change gradually, right?"

"So…maybe these fingerprints are actually…" Aizawa held up a small piece of paper in a plastic bag.

"Hm? Fingerprints?" Soichiro questioned.

"The labs found fingerprints on the postage stamps and videos that didn't belong to Sakura staff," Aizawa explained.

"Really?" Ebony craned her neck, trying to get a peek, but immediately regretted it since her sore muscles made their negative opinion on any motion known.

"We thought there was no way Kira would leave prints," Matsuda said.

"So we thought he made someone else handle the stuff, maybe," Aizawa finished.

"Hmm. I'd say it's possible the prints are the second Kira's," L mused.

"Wouldn't it be smarter to leave no fingerprints at all?" Ebony asked.

"Yes, it would, but if there is a second Kira out there, he's far less intelligent and methodical than the real Kira. It could be that he didn't think about the videos and packaging being seized by the police."

"Oh! So that's what you meant about the sloppy tapes," Ebony fiddled with her dangly earring, "The original Kira would be smart enough to know how to properly work the equipment. It's too bad we can't really use the prints, though," Ebony sighed, elaborating when Matsuda asked why, "Think about it. Yes, we suspect that Kira is here in Japan, but we could never take prints from everybody to compare them. That'd be a complete waste of time, not to mention impossible since there are Kira worshipers out there and they'd do whatever it takes to help Kira stay out of the police's clutches. They'd probably even go so far as to threaten others against giving their prints, and it's not like we can arrest everyone who wouldn't cooperate."

"Correct," L stated. Ebony was talking a lot today, but that might be because she was trying to actually be a part of the investigation since she still didn't really know her purpose for being here at all, "Interesting, though," L held up the prints Aizawa had handed him with his thumb and index fingers and inspected them with his head titled to the right, "how little these fingerprints are."

"Little?"

"Yes. A child's or – come here, please, Ebony-chan," Ebony went to him and he delicately took her hand in his, comparing the sizes, "See? Possibly a small woman's, like Ebony-chan."

"That tallies with what my son said to you at the hospital, about Kira being an affluent child," Soichiro said.

"What's 'affluent' mean?" Ebony asked.

"An abundance of materiel wealth," L responded, "Yagami-kun said Kira could be someone who already has everything he needs. Whether this is Kira or a second Kira, perhaps Light-kun was right. So anyway," L set the prints down and let go of Ebony's hand. Instead of returning to her seat, though, she perched on the arm of his chair like she had during the broadcast, "I thought about it further on the assumption that it's a second Kira, and even if the two Kiras don't kill people in the same way, I believe that if we capture one, we'll gain some clues at least as to how to capture the other one.

"In my estimation," L continued, "The real Kira is the smarter of the two. What do you think the real Kira would do in such a situation, Ebony-chan?"

"Uh, well, if I were Kira, I'd want to find the second one and either kill or use them," Ebony replied, a little caught off guard by the sudden question, "This Kira just needs a face, which would be perfect for the real Kira to kill those whose names he can't find out through other means, kind of like that proxy of yours. If he hadn't had his name displayed and Kira wanted to kill him, all he'd have to do is get the second Kira to get a look at his face, even though his name and all that had been concealed from the public. We're kind of in a race with the real Kira, aren't we?"

"Yes, I believe that we are. Yagami-san," L turned to the older man, "Would it be alright with you if I asked your son to work with us when he has the time?"

Ebony's breath hitched in her throat, her teeth grinding together. What was L thinking?! Did he finally work his brain into complete mush?!

"Can I take that to mean he's 100 percent cleared of suspicion?" Soichiro asked hopefully.

"No, I can't say that," L replied, blunt and to the point like always, "But I do think he has very good reasoning abilities. In fact, I think your son could be a valuable asset to us in apprehending the second Kira."

Ebony watched Soichiro's face fall, her heart going out to the man. Soichiro was one of the very few people that Ebony truly respected beyond what common courtesy demanded of her.

"Well, if my son says yes, I have no reason to stop him."

"We don't mind either," Matsuda said, also feeling bad for the Chief.

"I'm pretty sure your son's sense of justice will lead him to agree. However," Ebony fought the urge to grin as that out of place, innocent smile curled the corners of L's lips around his thumb, "Please keep it a secret from him that this Kira may be a fake. I want him to think he's helping us hunt down the same Kira we've been pursuing all along."

"Ebony," Said girl looked to Soichiro, "Why are you here, anyway?"

"Um," Ebony tilted her head back to look at the ceiling, "Figured out who he was from Watari's voice when I ran into him at the police station. Safety precaution now, I guess."

"Ryuzaki, holding someone against their will is illegal no matter what your reasons," Soichiro stated firmly, "You can't just keep her here."

"Ebony is not being held under duress," L replied. Ebony resisted the urge to scoff at his completely false words. Last time she'd checked, blackmail was a form of duress, "She can leave at any time."

"I want to help with this investigation," Ebony said in her own defense, "Besides, I'm not afraid of Kira."

"That is not a wise mentality," L turned his wide eyes to the girl beside him, "It is understandable given your age, but you should rid yourself of it as soon as possible."

"Uh-huh," Ebony sighed and stretched, feeling a few pops in her back, "Whatever floats your boat."

* * *

Author's Note: Yay! Another chapter. Did I do ok? Let me know, please! The review button is there for a reason.

-HaleyJo


	12. Response

Author's Note: I'm just going update crazy today, aren't I? Can't help it! I'm addicted to Death Note and my story! Oh yeah, another subtle cute moment is coming!

* * *

**12. RESPONSE**

"So Light-san is coming?" Ebony whispered to L while Soichiro was on the phone calling his son, and Matsuda was sent down to the lobby to await the bronze haired genius. L nodded and she frowned, "Are…you sure that's wise?"

"As of now, yes," L replied. She had reason to worry, he supposed, "You can be of use now."

"Hm?" Ebony cocked her head to the side, "How is that?"

"You know Yagami Light, but have no real opinion on him," L explained, "You will be able to give me an unbiased evaluation of his behavior."

"Oh," Ebony's eyes widened, "That's why you brought me here?"

"Yes. That is the reason."

"Ryuzaki," Soichiro returned to the couch, disrupting their whispered conversation, "I'd like to confirm this again. If my son brings up the possibility of a second Kira, then he will be cleared?"

"As I said earlier," L replied, bringing his teacup to his lips, "_mostly_ cleared."

Ebony squirmed slightly as she perched on the arm of L's chair, which seemed to be her favored spot of late. She wasn't sure how well this was all going to go over, it all seemed so risky…

Well, there wasn't much of a choice, as Matsuda just opened the door, Light following close behind. L and the others stood to greet him, giving him their fake names.

"I see…then should I be Asahi Light?" He questioned.

"That would be fine. I will call you Light-kun here," L responded. He then turned slightly, "You already know her."

"Ebony?" Light was more than a little surprised to see Ebony perched on the arm of one of the cushy chairs that decorated the expensive hotel room, fiddling with the dangly earring hanging from her right ear, "What are you doing here?"

"Helping," Ebony replied. She seemed awfully tense all of a sudden, her habit of fiddling with her earring soon accompanied by her habit of biting her nails.

"How about we get right down to things?" L suggested as he drew Light's attention away from Ebony and to the evidence lying on a coffee table, "Would you take a look at the evidence we've gathered, and the unreleased tape that was sent to the TV station? Understand that taking the documents out of this room or taking notes is prohibited."

Ebony watched Light as he viewed the tapes, the wheels in his head turning rapidly. Her fidgeting got worse and she had to take a deep, cleansing breath to soothe her senses and fold back into herself. If she didn't, she would just cause suspicion and worry.

He seemed to be almost disgusted, like the video offended him. It would offend anybody, so that didn't necessarily mean he was Kira, but the video would be most offending to Kira himself. It wasn't really like her observations would be credible anyway since they were just that: observations. Nothing concrete like physical evidence or eyewitness accounts.

"So, what do you think, Light-kun?" L asked, his index finger at his mouth, "Figure anything out?"

Both L and Ebony saw the brief flashes of realization and irritation flit across Light's features before they were smoothed away. He apparently figured out that this was another of L's endless tests.

"There may be more than one person with Kira's powers," Light concluded.

"K-Kira's powers?! What do you mean, Light?" Ebony couldn't tell if Soichiro was genuinely shocked or just prone to overacting. Maybe it was both.

"At the very least, there's a high chance that this isn't the same Kira," Light elaborated, jerking a thumb in the direction of the TV screen, "Up until now, Kira wouldn't use suspects like this to show he can predict their deaths."

Ebony frowned at Matsuda and Aizawa's shock. Could they really not believe that people of such intellect existed? L was a prime example, and they had been around him for a few months.

"And if Kira needs a name and face to kill someone," Light continued, "then how does it explain how the cops who showed up at the station were killed?"

"Exactly, Light-kun," L moved his hand back to his jeans pocket, "We are also assuming this is a second Kira."

"So you knew, Ryuga," Light crossed his arms, his expression only slightly irritated like anyone else's would be, "I mean, Ryuzaki? You were testing me?"

"It wasn't a test," Ebony choked back a snicker, "If I was the only one who came up with a second Kira theory, then it wouldn't be very persuasive. With you also thinking the same thing, the theory is greatly strengthened," Ebony thought she was going to suffocate from holding in her laughter, "You really are a great help, Light-kun."

'_He planned to investigate this as a second Kira, no matter what I said,'_ Light was beyond irritated. This man knew exactly how to piss him off, _'If I hadn't suggested a fake Kira, his suspicion of me would have only increased…And if I don't fall for it, then it just strengthens his theory. Nice thinking…'_

"Then it's decided," L declared, that air of righteous confidence working past his spacey demeanor, "First we must stop the second Kira. He's clearly on Kira's side, and not very bright. He may respond to a message from the real Kira. If a second Kira doesn't really exist then it's meaningless, but it's still worth a try. We need to be thinking about how to deal with the real Kira, but we must focus on this one first."

"Impressive, Ryuzaki," Light had to admit. This man was proving to be the rival he'd been searching for his whole life, someone to really challenge him on a mental level, "I was just thinking that was the best option."

"And for this, Light-kun," Ebony could see the very slight, mischievous grin peeking at the corner of his lips, "I want you to play the part of the real Kira!"

"M…me?" Ebony started laughing at the look of Light's face. Soichiro and Aizawa both gave her a silencing look, but she couldn't help it.

"Yes, it should be easy with your abilities," L replied, adding this new note to one of his many, many mental lists. Psychologically pressuring Yagami Light both entertained him and got Ebony to laugh. He continued, "We don't have much time, will you please write up a message from the real Kira that we can use during tonight's news?"

Orders started flying around to make it happen. Ebony helped by drawing up a much nicer version of Kira's name, putting her cake-decorating skills to use. She was inwardly thrilled to receive subtle praise on her work from L. He didn't toss out compliments very often, so it was really something whenever he did.

"Is that good enough, Ryuzaki?" Light asked as he ignored the chuckling Shinigami beside him and handed L the script he'd written up, L taking it between his forefingers and thumbs like he held everything, "I tried to get into Kira's shoes."

"…It's very well done but…if we don't take out this 'But you can kill L' part…" L looked up from the paper to observe the other young man, "I'll die."

Light laughed good-naturedly, "Well, when I thought about it from Kira's point of view, I figured he'd definitely want L dead in this situation. It was just a joke," Light stretched a bit and wove his fingers together behind his head, "Fix that up as you see fit."

"Yes," L then realized that Ebony was trying to read the paper over his shoulder and adjusted his hold on it so she could read it.

"Are you guys assuming this Kira has a one-track mind?" She asked.

"Yeah," Light shrugged, "It wouldn't be surprising."

"Aihara-san," L held the paper out to the man with the afro, "the script is ready. Here you are."

"Right," Aizawa grasped the paper and sped off.

L watched as Ebony left to the kitchen for a short moment before returning with a small plate filled with apple slices and a small dish of sugar. Light noticed Ryuk staring longingly at her food and had to fight back an amused smirk.

"What are you eating, Ebony-chan?" L asked, giving her food a curious glance as he gnawed on his thumbnail.

"Granny Smith apple in sugar," She replied, "It sounds odd, but it's really rather good. It's also fruit, so it's healthy despite the sugar. Wanna try some?"

"Alright," L agreed. He was incredibly picky about anything he put in his mouth, but he also could never pass up an opportunity for sugar.

"M'kay. Here," Ebony took up a slice of apple and dipped it in the sugar, holding it out to the eccentric detective.

She got a bit of a shock though, when, instead of taking it from her hand, L leaned forward and bit off half the slice, looking up at the ceiling as he contemplated the flavor. Ebony felt her face flush due to his action and prayed no one noticed.

"Hm, that is actually quite good," L finally gave his approval for the snack, "I will have to remember that."

Ebony grinned and returned to her food, allowing L to occasionally steal some for himself. Everyone was on edge until about two days later when, through the laptop and behind the letter L, Watari contacted them to inform them that the tape from the second Kira had just been received by Sakura TV.

"_The materials are on the way to you but,"_ Watari was saying, _"I will now send you a copy of what's on the tape."_

A second after that, the familiar, messy 'Kira' name appeared on the laptop screen while everyone gathered around it, L sitting in his chair while everyone else was standing. Ebony, as usual, was perched on the arm of L's chair.

"_Kira, thank you for responding,"_ The deeply garbled voice said, _"I will do as you say."_

Everyone was thrilled by such a response while Light was going over whether or not this person could be of any use considering they fell for this bluff so easily, thus leaving L in safety for now. He should have decided to continue with his plan, not stop immediately.

"_I want to meet you, Kira,"_ The voice said, sounding almost giddy with delight, _"I don't think you have the eyes, but I won't kill you. Don't worry."_

Light instantly developed a look of disbelief on his face, staring at the screen incredulously. Was this person really so stupid as to mention something like that in a way that the whole world would hear of it?

"Having the eyes…?" Aizawa questioned, "What does that mean?"

L ignored all the other voices, leaning slightly closer to the screen. There was something going on that was beyond his scope of understanding…

"_Please think of a way we can meet without the police knowing,"_ The second Kira continued, _"We can confirm each other when we meet by showing our Shinigami."_

'_This is horrible,'_ Light's heart was pounding, his head spinning slightly in barely suppressed panic, _'I have to do something fast or…'_

A sudden clang and slight exclamation of surprise stopped Light's thoughts. L had been so shocked that he'd knocked his chair over, thus bringing Ebony down with him. She ended up sprawled across his lap with her hands against his chest and her mouth almost touching his throat, one leg between his.

"Are you ok, Ryuzaki? Ebony?" Matsuda gasped.

"Shinigami…?" L stared at the screen, disbelief in his voice and face. Ebony stared at him. Did he actually believe…? "Are we supposed to accept the existence of such a thing…?"

"Shinigami? No way," Matsuda shook his head, concerned for L's sanity as was everyone else.

"You're right, Ryuzaki. Shingami can't possibly exist," Light almost wanted to laugh at his statement seeing as how a Shinigami was standing behind his right shoulder, grinning like always. L glanced around to the bronze haired genius as he placed a hand on Ebony's back, spanning the distance between her shoulder blades with his fingertips. Of course, his long hand was more than the distance since her back was so small. He noticed something a bit odd about her back, but decided not to think on it now. It wasn't important.

"Kira also made a prisoner write something that seemed to suggest the existence of Shinigami…" L replied slowly, new puzzle pieces forming in his head as he sought some stability in feeling Ebony's heartbeat through her back.

"Then should we assume this is the same Kira?" Soichiro asked, "The same person using the same word?"

"That's not possible, Dad," Light said.

"He's right, Yagami-san," Ebony spoke up, "This Kira wouldn't have replied to our fake Kira if there was only one Kira. He would have known this was a fake. And he would have kept the plan to kill Ryuzaki, right?"

"Then the real and second Kira have joined forces and are trying to confuse the investigation with the word 'Shinigami'?" Aizawa wondered.

"That's also not possible," L cut in, helping Ebony to get them untangled from each other and getting to their feet, righting the chair again, "As Ebony-chan said, if they were working together, then they wouldn't stop their plan to kill me. The second Kira is acting from his own feelings, and not Kira's ideals. It's not related to Kira's goals of 'punishing criminals to change the world and killing anyone who gets in my way.' The second Kira's own feelings…"

L finally got the chair upright and climbed back into it, "The desire to meet Kira."

"That's right. The second Kira isn't acting out of a sense of changing the world," Light agreed, "He's merely interested in Kira. Maybe this 'Shinigami' term is describing the ability to kill?" Light crossed his arms, looking thoughtful, "'Confirming each other by showing our Shinigami.' We could think of that as meaning that they will show each other their abilities to kill people."

"…Yes," L mused, "At the very least, we know that the word 'Shinigami' has some kind of meaning between the two of them. We can try to set things up in order to learn more about this."

"Then we'll send another message?" Light shook his head, "If we fish around too much without knowing anything, we'll reveal that we're not really Kira."

"No, from now on we'll let Kira and the second Kira handle everything. We can assume that the second Kira is very happy right now after receiving a reply from Kira…even if he knows it was created by the police," L concluded, "He's succeeded in getting Kira's attention."

"How come you're all saying the second Kira is a guy?" Ebony asked from where she was sitting beside L's chair. She was nervous about getting knocked over again, so she chose the floor, "The second Kira sounds way more like a schoolgirl about to go out on her first date."

"What brought you to such a conclusion, Ebony?" L asked, interested to hear her thinking.

"Well, I've never been on a date, but I've heard plenty of girls gush about it and seen it a lot on TV and in books," Ebony shrugged, "This Kira sounded like a girl. The voice is garbled and really deep, yeah, but the inflections are clear enough to say it's a girl on the other end."

"Hm, that's an interesting theory. We'll have to keep that in mind. Regardless of gender, this Kira's used terms only the two of them would understand," L made sure to file that information away since it coincided with the little fingerprints found on the tapes, "We'll run this reply on tonight's 6 o'clock news on Sakura TV. Obviously Kira must be paying attention to this back and forth between the second Kira and the one we have created.

"From Kira's view, he'd definitely want to avoid the second Kira getting captured by the police," Ebony rolled her eyes. That was obvious! "Kira may start worrying about what will happen if he doesn't interfere. It's possible that the real Kira may send a reply next time."

Ebony glanced at Light, watching his face very carefully. She caught the slightest hint of surprise and then a bit of defiance. No, he wouldn't send in a reply, especially now that L had said that might happen. Immature, sore losers acted that way.

"With these circumstances, he'd have to use Sakura TV," L continued, "The internet is full of irresponsible claims about Kira and L's identity, it would be impossible to verify. And most importantly, judging from the second Kira's video message, it seems likely that he is bad with machines and not particularly diligent."

"What about if the second Kira gets no response?" Ebony asked, looking up at L, "She doesn't seem like one to take rejection well."

"I have thought of that," L replied, tapping his left index finger against his knee, an excited grin curling his lips, "The second Kira will probably release more information to the police and media that Kira wants to keep secret, in order to pressure Kira into meeting him. That would be very interesting."

"Indeed," Ryuk chuckled from behind Light. This whole thing just kept getting more and more fun by the moment.

"And it would be even more interesting if Kira sends a reply in order to avoid this," L tapped the knuckle of his right index finger under her chin, that grin still in place since they seemed to finally be making some progress in this case, "If that happens there's a chance we could gain some physical evidence against Kira. We will closely examine every piece of mail sent to any television station. If they do receive something from Kira or the second Kira, I will decide whether they can broadcast it or not."

Ebony giggled. That made him sound like a dictator, but this was different. These responses could be the difference between life and death for many people around the world. They couldn't afford to allow them to be broadcast willy-nilly. There was too much at stake for that.

Unbeknownst to all but those who had a Death Note, Ryuk was cackling like mad in the background. This just kept getting better and better!

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Author's Note: I love Ryuk! He always makes me smile! Like reviews! They do that too!

-HaleyJo


	13. Source of Comfort

Author's Note: Another chapter! This one doesn't really go anywhere, but I love it! It is supposed to be cute, and I hope you all think it is too. Enjoy!

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**13. SOURCE OF COMFORT**

She was sitting in a corner with books, papers, and a variety of pens and pencils strewn about her on the floor, a laptop open by her right knee. She was gnawing unconsciously on her thumbnail, moving to her index finger when she had bitten the nail down to the point that any more biting would cause her to bleed. Her free hand flipped through a few pages of the largest book and then scrolled down the internet page she was looking at, leaning closer to the screen and furrowing her brow in concentration.

L knew that he really shouldn't be staring at Ebony like he was. He should be thinking over how to catch the second Kira, not admiring the graceful curve of her neck that he could see since she'd clipped her hair up out of the way. That was easier said than done, though. She just distracted him so easily! Her face and voice would pop up in his head at the most inappropriate of times, and the frequency of these lapses in concentration would always get worse and worse until he talked to her. Then they would go away for a while before coming back again later, sometimes even worse than before.

L wondered if this was similar to being addicted to an illegal substance. It might be since she was only seventeen, meaning she was still a minor.

"What is it that you're trying to find, Ebony-chan?" L asked as he stood from his seat and slouched over to her, crouching by her side and giving in to his infatuation's demands for the moment.

"Family annihilators," Ebony stated, flipping through a book again, moving from her index nail to her middle nail, "A bit difficult to find reliable information on uncomfortable subjects. Irritating."

"Family annihilators…Here," L gently moved her hands from the keys and typed in a website, bringing it up for them to see, "This should help."

"Oh!" Ebony smiled as her pink eyes scanned over the information, "Thanks, L!"

"Ryuzaki."

"Yeah, yeah," Ebony waved off his correction, eagerly taking notes in one of her notebooks.

"You need to pay attention to the rules more," L poked her in the side of the head, "They are in place for everyone's safety. If the second Kira were to discover that you are affiliated with me, your life could be in great jeopardy."

"You're actually worried about me?" Ebony asked, the white eraser of her black mechanical pencil resting against her lower lip.

"I thought I stated that fact before," L replied. It bothered him a bit to think that she hadn't really believed that he worried about her.

"Sorry. I've just never had anyone worry about me. Not for several years, anyway," Ebony turned back to the computer screen.

"Well, I do worry," L patted her on the head as he stood, amused by the slight scowl she gave him for the action, "So please try to avoid saying things or getting into situations that could endanger your life."

"Why so worried?" Ebony asked, "I can be a bit loopy sometimes when I'm excited, but I know how to keep my mouth shut," Ebony then grinned slyly, "You certainly worry a lot. Perhaps your midnight hair will soon turn white like mine."

L's eyes widened slightly. She had said nearly the same thing he had back when she first came to stay with Watari and himself, which had caused her to cuff him upside the head.

"Ebony-chan is teasing me again," L stated, moving back to crouch beside her. He leaned forward in a deliberate action to invade her personal space. He tucked a stray lock of hair that had slid out of her hairclip behind her ear, using the lock's disobedience as an excuse to touch her soft hair again.

"You deserve it," Ebony shrugged, doing her best to act unfazed by his disregard for personal boundaries, "You have a mild superiority complex."

"Not true," L replied, almost seeming to pout at the accusation, "I merely acknowledge my abilities. It isn't my fault if people see my view on my worth as arrogance. I can't control what they think."

"I suppose you make a good point there," Ebony replied as she finished her notes and clicked away from the sight L had led her to, "People say to be proud of yourself and to be confident, but they don't really mean it. The second you do start feeling happy with yourself, with your abilities, everyone accuses you of being self-centered and egotistical."

Suddenly, Ebony's stomach let out a frustrated growl, clearly unhappy with its lack of proper, timely nutrition. L smiled at the slightly sheepish look on her face as she pressed a hand to her abdomen as though to quiet it.

"It seems as though you have been neglecting your stomach, Ebony-chan," L commented, watching her grin slightly in embarrassment. L moved to shut down the computer he had been working with before being distracted and walked back over to her, offering her his hand, "Come outside and eat with me?"

"Outside?" Ebony cocked her head slightly, "But you never go outside."

"I _rarely_ go outside," L corrected her, "I merely assumed you have grown tired of being cooped up for so long and would like to breathe fresh air again. Also, this will allow me to keep watch over you so as to ensure that you aren't late back again."

"Gee, thanks," Ebony grated, but she accepted his hand regardless after shutting down the laptop and tidying her books, "Isn't this risky, though, with that second Kira about?"

"No one will know who I am," L replied as he approached the door, searching for his shoes. Once he found them, he slipped them on and dug his phone from his pocket, "The second Kira will see no need to inspect me and, even if he does see my face, he will see no need to remember it. And if this Kira is as dumb as he seems, he is not likely to recall my face enough to use it later."

"That's true," Ebony agreed, watching as L typed in a number and held the phone to his ear in that funny way he held everything, "No one would ever suspect you to be L. Even the task force probably had mental conniptions when they first saw you."

"Yet you had no trouble believing it," L replied before turning his attention to the phone, "Watari, Ebony-chan and I are going outside to get food."

"_Are you sure that's wise, Ryuzaki?"_ Watari asked. L didn't just go outside without a reason, and never did he leave with a normal reason.

"Ebony-chan worried about that too, but no one will be inclined to remember my face," L replied as they left the room.

"_Very well. Would you like me to drive you?"_

"That will not be necessary. Maybe when we are ready to return."

"_Alright. Do enjoy yourselves."_

"Thank you, Watari," L hung up the phone and stuffed it back in his pocket, "Due to living on the streets, I assume you know the city better than I do, so where would you like to go?"

Ebony made that odd humming noise and tilted her head back a bit, something she always did when she was thinking. L deduced that the humming noise was to show that she was thinking it over and that her pause wasn't her ignoring him.

"Oh! I know," They were walking toward the elevator now, Ebony punching the DOWN button to take them to the hotel lobby, "There's this coffee shop that sells both sweets and regular food. Me and Light-san stopped there on our way home from school once back when he was tutoring me. It's a nice little place and overall pretty quiet since its size makes it pretty obscure as compared to other teen hangouts and stuff."

"Ah, yes. I remember that place," L replied as they stood in the lift, watching the little light for the floors going down to the lobby as they passed levels, "Light-kun and I went there once after playing tennis."

"Hm. From what I've heard, Light-san stopped playing tennis just before he started high school. His sister Sayu prattled on about it for a while when I first started visiting for lessons. He's never been one to back down from a challenge, though."

"What all do you know of Light-kun?" L asked as they walked down the streets. It was a heavy overcast day, dark, menacing clouds that threatened a good rainstorm in the near future. The foot traffic wasn't terribly heavy, but enough people were about to stare at them.

"Well, I never got really close to any of the Yagamis," Ebony shrugged, her hand fiddling with her dangly earring, "I greatly respect Light-san's father, though. He is a very good man, and I've never met many of those."

"Tell me, Ebony-chan," L allowed her to lead him down the street. They were passing by To-Oh now, so they were getting close to the little coffee shop, "Do you think Light-kun could be Kira?"

Ebony frowned at the ground as she contemplated her answer, starting to hop from crack to crack in the pavement, "It wouldn't surprise me. His behavior hasn't been…normal. I mean, it is but it isn't at the same time. There's a…cautiousness that wasn't there before. He's not like he was just some months ago. Far more serious. He was serious to begin with and I guess that hasn't changed but…" Ebony then grinned slightly up at him, "I'm not making any sense, am I?"

"No, you're making perfect sense," L assured her, touching her hand lightly when she almost walked past the coffee shop. They entered and took a booth near the one he and Light had taken the last time he'd been here, "It's something you can't really explain or prove. It's something you can feel, somehow."

Ebony seemed relieved, probably worried that he would have thought she was just being crazy. Once their food came, she grinned at the two slices of different cakes, the doughnut, and the tea L had placed before him. She just chose a simple chicken nugget and fries meal with a small ear of corn.

"I don't get how you're still alive with your diet," Ebony remarked as she bit into a nugget, "That'll kill you before Kira does."

L simply shrugged as he dropped many sugar cubes into his tea and stirred them in, seeming satisfied when he sampled it. Ebony rolled her eyes as she continued eating her own food. Things were quiet for a good while, but it was a peaceful silence rather than an awkward one. L watched as Ebony looked at the roiling clouds overhead, admiration in her eyes.

"You enjoy storms," He stated.

"Very much so," Ebony smiled gently, "You can feel a kind of energy in the air, a thrill. Storms are powerful, but somehow that power isn't frightening. I've wondered if maybe it's because it's a completely unbiased power, you know? There's no specific person or people that it goes after, it just doesn't give a damn. No one's any better than anyone else, any more deserving of harm or help. It's just…a very pure power. No malicious intensions at all. If shit happens, it's just because it happened, and that's all there is to it."

L made a mental note to get Ebony to speak of her passions more often. Such subjects were what usually brought out her intelligence. She normally kept to herself, so it was hard to accurately gauge her abilities. Plus, she just said interesting things. She always managed to give things life even when they weren't alive. She added creativity to her logic and could make even the silliest, more frivolous of things sound like reasonable things to think of even if they really weren't.

"When we go back," Ebony said, tearing her gaze from the clouds to her strange companion, "can we walk? I don't like cars. They make me nervous."

L mulled that over while taking a glance outside himself. If they walked a bit faster back than they had when they left, there was a good chance that they'd be able to make it before the rain hit.

"That seems reasonable," L agreed. A big reason for his agreeing was his desire for more time alone with Ebony. He wasn't quite sure when, but sometime over the course of the day he'd decided to just let his feelings overrun him a bit and let the chips fall where they may. Ebony just kept getting more and more interesting to him. He'd initially assumed that it was simple curiosity due to his limited contact with other human beings and that the curiosity would die down rather quickly as it had with the rest of the task force. Actually, none of the task force had held his interest for any longer than the first minute or so of their first visit. Not even Yagami Light, his prime suspect for Kira, could grab his attention so tightly without even trying.

After paying the bill, L and Ebony left the little coffee shop, still garnering funny glances that they ignored. The cloud cover was so thick that it looked way later than it actually was. The scent of rain was heavy in the air and rumbling could be heard rapidly approaching from the distance. From the northwest, if he was correct.

Unlike Ebony, L had never been fond of heavy storms. A good rain he could deal with just fine and he enjoyed them on some level, but not when they were accompanied by lightning and thunder. Recalling the calming feeling he'd been granted from that night of the second Kira's first appearance and their next message, he decided to see if it still worked and gently grasped Ebony's small hand in his larger one. She jumped slightly, but didn't pull away, so he didn't let go. His deductions seemed to prove true as he instantly felt calmer, less jumpy, with Ebony's hand in his.

"You ok?" Ebony asked, her pink eyes scrolling over his face. She was concerned for him, and her obvious worry for his personal wellbeing caused that warm feeling he was becoming familiar with to bloom behind his ribcage. Only Watari ever worried for him that way.

"Thunderstorms drag me from my personal comfort zone," L replied, "I found during the second Kira's murderous broadcast that holding your hand takes away some of my anxiety, so I assumed it would have the same effect now."

"And does it?"

"Actually, yes, it does," L gave her his adorable grin, "Will you allow me to continue holding your hand, or would you rather I didn't?"

"Hm," That funny humming sound issued from her throat again as she tapped her chin with her other hand, mocking serious thought, "If I let you hold my hand, can I ask you a question and believe that you won't laugh at me for it or think I'm asking out of something other than simple curiosity?"

"Alright," L agreed, enjoying seeing her eyes light up.

"Ok. I've been wanting to ask someone this for several months after I learned of it, but I knew everyone would assume things," Ebony sighed and then asked her question, "Do people use food as a means of arousal and foreplay because it's associated with the mouth?"

L was surprised by her question. She seemed rather conservative to be asking about sexual matters with such a casual face and tone, "Why are you curious about that?"

"Just from when I read about it," Ebony shrugged, "I may not be eager to experience anything firsthand yet, but I am a teenager with hormones and no parents. Internet gives out a lot of information and people post smut and things all the time."

"Understandable," L nodded and began thinking, "I suppose that is a reasonable conclusion to come to. Mouths are used in kissing and oral sex, and the lips and tongue are highly sensitive places, which would therefore make them very sensual places that one would aim to manipulate for sexual gratification. I'm not speaking from personal experience, mind you," L told her, "So don't take everything I say as pure fact. I'm merely drawing conclusions from what I know of human anatomy."

"You know, I've never met another person who can talk about sex and not think that it's dirty or that I'm trying to seduce them," Ebony grinned, "It's a nice change. Thank you."

"You're welcome," L replied. He was certain that she'd asked the question just to watch his reaction, but he didn't voice his suspicion, "So I am to assume that this means you will allow me to hold your hand?"

"If you wish," Ebony shrugged. She'd never been used as a source of comfort before, and it didn't feel half bad.

Another roll of thunder swept in, much louder than the last time. Ebony squeezed his hand gently, and L greatly appreciated the gesture. Almost no one was out on the streets now and rain was beginning to fall. Due to the tightening of her grip, L noticed that Ebony had very rough hands unlike most females, like they'd been subjected to harsh use far too much. She worked in a bakery, so it made sense to assume she'd burned herself more than once, but he doubted that was where the roughness had come from. One rarely developed such thick calluses from baking.

"Well, damn," Ebony sighed, turning an irritated glance upward, blinking when a large drop of rain splattered on her nose, "Guess we're not going to avoid getting wet, huh?"

"Seems highly unlikely," L agreed, his fingers beginning to toy with Ebony's in response to his keyed up state. Said girl giggled slightly and he frowned at her, "May I inquire as to the source of your amusement?"

"You just make funny faces when you're displeased," Ebony pointed toward his face, an amused grin overtaking her pretty features.

"Oh, really?" L considered that. He didn't really know what kinds of faces he made and when. He barely even really knew what he looked like since he never looked into reflective surfaces. He just didn't care about his appearance like other people did, "I'm glad I can make you laugh, then."

They were able to make it back to the hotel before the really heavy rain hit, but that didn't mean they weren't wet. They got very unhappy looks from the hotel staff when they entered the lobby, dripping water all over their fine floors, and L had to half drag a laughing Ebony to the elevator. She was more than a little amused by the faces of the hotel staff, saying she'd never had that many people irritated with her all at once.

"Thank you, Watari," Ebony smiled when they entered the hotel room and Watari was there, a towel in each hand for the returning friends.

"You're welcome, Miss Ebony," Watari smiled that grandfatherly smile of his, "Did you enjoy yourselves?"

"Uh-huh," Ebony grinned as she settled by the window, peering through the curtains as the storm finally hit, "We didn't even argue!"

"That's very good to hear," Watari was thrilled with the way things were going. It seemed that L had finally begun to make his advances, though he doubted Ebony realized it. She was simply glad for the idea of having a friend and hadn't considered anything more just yet.

It was terribly obvious to the old man, however, that L wanted much more. L suspected Watari knew of his interest in the white haired girl since he really couldn't hide it from him, especially considering when he and Ebony had fallen over during the second Kira's response. Instead of getting as far away from her as he could which was his normal response to sudden physical contact, he had placed his hand on her back and only moved when he'd finally calmed down.

* * *

Author's Note: Think nothing of Ebony's question. It really was just curiosity. I thought it would be a funny thing to put in here because I've wondered that same question myself before. It has no purpose. Just to be something for them to discuss. Anyway, please review for me!

**sun-sun kat:** Yes, your review made me smile. I think you'll like their interactions once they meet. Trust me!

**Lady of Dreams and Nightmares:** Sorry. No dice. But it was an awesome guess. You're really smart!

**IvoryCrayon:** I'm glad you liked the fall. I loved it too! It was too perfect not to put in!

**MythCreatorWriter:** I'll try to keep the long sentences thing in mind. Thank you. And don't worry. It isn't Death Note if Light doesn't freak out over something, and I've been having fun with Ebony and Misa. I think you'll like it when she finally comes into the picture! Hee! (P.S. Mike says 'Hi'!)

**animegirlskipper: **Don't worry. The likelihood of my stopping posting is basically nonexistent. I'm glad my writing of L seems to fit him so well. Please keep reviewing. Yours are always so animated and make me grin!

AKI: No. Ebony's not a robot. This story is more a supernatural thing, not sci-fi.

**LittleKittyShaoMao:** Thank you for your compound review. I'm glad you saw the necessity of the wimpy-short chapter. I was worried people might be mad at me for that, which is why I updated more than once before anyone could hunt me down and hold me prisoner until I finished the story. I don't work so well under pressure.

**MrsGosh-Chan:** No worries. I'm not offended. It took me a long while to decide to use Ebony in this story because of her appearance. I'd created her a while back, so I couldn't change her. It wouldn't feel right. If you want to see her, the icon on my profile is a picture of her that I drew some months ago. I honestly hadn't expected her to turn out so pretty, but she did! So I just couldn't help but use her here! It was too tempting! Thank you for your review!

-HaleyJo


	14. Rumors

Author's Note: Another chapter. I like this one too.

* * *

**14. RUMORS**

"It feels kind of weird walking to school together."

"Why is that?"

"Well, for one thing, you're not _really_ going to school. You're just acting like it so you can freak out Light-san. The other thing, I'm just not used to walking with people. I've never really had friends before, so it's a bit new."

"Ah. I see."

L pulled a candy from his pocket with his two fingers, unwrapping it and popping it into his mouth. He could see how Ebony was thinking over her words, curious of how she was supposed to act when walking with someone. It had probably been easier before because there hadn't been as many people out due to the oncoming storm. Now they were under even more scrutinizing eyes, and she had always preferred to keep a low profile for whatever reason. Really, no more people were watching her than usual, which meant many of them were, so he wondered what made it different.

'_Perhaps Ebony-chan is too lost in her own thoughts when walking alone to notice others and becomes aware of the attention when she has to acknowledge the presence of another on the risk of being rude,'_ L mused. That made sense.

L then noticed how she was biting her index nail harshly, getting precariously close to the skin, and tugged her hand away from her mouth, "If you bite any more, you will begin to bleed," Was his response to her questioning gaze.

"Oh. Sorry," L allowed her hand to fall from his, feeling her rough calluses slide against the contrasting smoothness of his own fingers. It seemed that he was taking every opportunity to touch her, even without really being aware that that was what he was doing. He wondered how quickly she would notice.

"Hey, Ryuga, when's your birthday?" Ebony suddenly asked, flicking her earring back and forth between her fingers. From spending such uninterrupted time with her that day they went to the coffee shop, L had discovered that the little charm was actually an American dime that had somehow been bent almost completely in half. When he asked, she'd told him that she had found it in the streets a few years ago and decided it would be really cool to make it into an earring. L wondered how many other teenage females would make a bent dime into an earring on a whim. Probably not very many.

"Why do you ask?" He saw the slight irritation in her face by answering her question with a question, but she didn't comment on it. Probably since she often did that, too.

"I want to know when it is so I can make an extra special cake for you that day," Ebony grinned as her hand moved from her earring to a keychain she had attached to her hip holster. It had the gothic letter 'L' he used whenever speaking to the police forces of the world through a laptop. She'd picked it up at a convenience store not long after the second Kira's murdering broadcast.

"It is not in my best interests to reveal anything of myself," L replied, "I only revealed my face to the investigation detectives in order to gain their trust since I was rapidly losing it, and I knew it was the best way to bait Kira."

"So you're not going to tell me," Ebony sighed unhappily before she perked up again, "Maybe I can ask Watari! He might tell me!"

"He might not."

"You said 'might'!" Ebony giggled, skipping ahead of him, "Means you think there is a possibility he may!"

"It is a thirty-two percent possibility," L admitted as he followed a step or two behind her. Getting a little goofy like she was now seemed to be making her feel more comfortable out on the open, "He has grown rather fond of you, so it is no longer a certainty that he will keep his silence."

"Yay for me, then."

L smiled slightly, enjoying her happiness. Even though he suspected she had had a very difficult life, she looked as though she'd never seen the evils of the world when she was smiling.

-oooOooo-

Ebony grunted as she hefted her backpack up so she could walk down the stairs. Staircases were the only disadvantage her wheeled backpack had, but she still refused the ones you carried on your back. She then perked up when she saw L passing by the base of the stairs.

"Hey, Ryuga!" She went a little faster and ended up tripping, of course. She nearly flattened a young woman who had just turned to come up the stairs, but managed to avoid her at the last second. Ebony was very lucky that L had been there, because he ended up catching her before she hit the ground.

"Are you alright, Ebony-chan?" L asked, trying to keep her upright as she worked to find her footing.

"Hey, you need to be more careful," The woman she nearly flattened frowned down at them, tucking a lock of short black hair behind her ear with an air of arrogance that made Ebony instantly dislike her.

"It was an accident, Takada-san," L stated, seeing Ebony's temper spiking. He wondered if she was on her cycle.

"Well, you should keep your girlfriend in line so she's not trampling anyone else," Takada huffed as she continued up the stairs.

"W-wait! I'm not-" Ebony couldn't finish before Takada was beyond hearing range. Her face was a very revealing shade of red as she grumbled under her breath. Something about how everyone was always assuming things.

"The odds of her statement not thoroughly saturating the campus by the day's end are about 0.5 percent," L said as he allowed Ebony to step away to regain their personal boundaries.

"You know her?"

"Most on campus do," L shrugged, "She is apparently quite popular. Other students often refer to her as Miss To-Oh or the refined Takada."

"Those names sound silly," Ebony grabbed her backpack and they proceeded to walk away from the stairs, "Yeah, she's _refined_ alright. Refined enough to be a bitch to someone who just tripped on their way down the stairs. She must have a very inflated ego by now with such attention."

"Yes, more than likely," L agreed, "Such things happen that way."

As it turned out, L's guess on the rumor of them dating was completely correct. By the end of the day, Ebony had been asked why she was dating such a 'weird freak as Ryuga' on three separate occasions. She kept saying that they weren't dating, but what she really wanted to do was give them a good concussion for talking about L that way. Ebony had a very strong protective streak from living on the streets for so long. If you had something you considered valuable, you went to every length possible and impossible to protect and guard it no matter what. She wasn't entirely certain when she'd changed from wanting to hit L to wanting to hit whoever mocked him, but she decided she didn't care. It was how she felt and she decided to just leave it alone. It would surely explain itself in time.

Wouldn't it?

* * *

Author's Note: L and his percentiles. You gotta love them! I do not like Takada at all. I hate her whole fake modesty thing and how she looks down on other women. She just pisses me off! Little twit! -ahem- Anywho, please review me!

**MythCreatorWriter:** Thanks! I'm glad L's advances seem believable. I'm looking forward to Light's freak out moments too. They're always so funny!

**Mel1983:** I'm glad reading my story made you happier on ending yours. I'll be sad when BIF ends too. I've loved that story. Not that I don't love your others too, but you know what I mean. Glad I could make you smile. (P.S. Does your name was 1983 in it because that's when you were born?)

**MrsGosh-Chan: **I'm glad you liked Ebony's picture. It's one of my personal favorites. I didn't expect it, but I'm glad the picture changed your opinion on her hair color. Boo-yaa!

Thank you everyone!

-HaleyJo


	15. Diary

Author's Note: I would have updated yesterday, but I had to jump to get to my Tae-Kwon-Do class. So, yeah, sorry about that. Anywho, enjoy the chapter!

* * *

**15. DIARY**

L was perched in a cushy chair like always, his favorite chair in the hotel room they were currently staying at. He watched Light carefully as his father handed him the diary the second Kira had sent them, twenty-two days after sending in the video that spoke of eyes and Shinigami, six days after he and Ebony had left the hotel to eat at the small coffee shop. Speaking of Ebony, she would be arriving back from school soon.

As though reading his mind, Ebony let herself into the room with the extra cardkey she'd been given, a slightly sour look on her face that she usually had after being out in public. She composed herself quite quickly, though, and went to put her things in her room before returning, sitting on the arm of L's chair.

"What's going on?" Ebony asked.

"We received what seems to be a diary from the second Kira," L responded as he stood and faced Light, who was analyzing the diary almost too closely, "What do you think, Light-kun?"

"Huh?" Light frowned, _'Ryuzaki…L…He doesn't know that "notebook" is a keyword…even so, I should hold back here and see what he does…'_ Light shook his head, "For now…all I can say is that this person is stupid."

"Exactly," Matsuda said, trying to be of help to the investigation instead of dead weight, "Wanting us to broadcast this diary is obviously a message to Kira. Even if it is written as a diary from last year, it's clear they plan to meet with Kira at the Giants game that happens on the same day this year."

"Does this mean the person can't even figure out that once we broadcast this, the game will be cancelled?" Soichiro rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

"It'd be a total panic," Matsuda agreed, "The media would be screaming that going to the game would get you killed by Kira, and other nonsense."

"…Frankly, it seems idiotic, but," L walked back over to the coffee table and grabbed up a chocolate, popping it in his mouth, "That also makes it difficult to react to. If we broadcast the diary," L continued as he climbed back into his chair, "then we'll also have to announce that the game is cancelled. If we don't broadcast the diary, the second Kira won't act."

"Can I see the diary?" Ebony asked. L grabbed the paper from the coffee table and handed it to her, wondering what she was looking for.

"If the game gets cancelled he may get angry and do who knows what…" Matsuda chimed in as he sat down on one of the couches

"That shouldn't be a problem," L replied, "The second Kira seems to revere Kira. Let's assume that he's sworn to the Kira we created not to kill unnecessarily anymore.

"Anyway, for now," L waved the previous topic away, "Let's broadcast the diary and announce the cancellation of the game, and also that we will be closing off the streets around the Tokyo Dome and conducting an investigation there. We received so much police cooperation during that Sakura TV incident, I believe we could manage that. Then we'll create a reply from the 'real' Kira saying 'Understood, let's meet.'"

"You're not thinking they'd come after it's announced that there will be police presence around the Tokyo Dome?" Soichiro asked, thinking it very unlikely.

"I don't think Kira would come, but…I'm not sure about the second Kira. I don't know how stupid he is."

"Why do you say she's stupid?" Ebony asked as her eyes scanned over the page, "Things in here could mean tons of different things. Like this one for the twenty-second about showing off her notebook with a friend. The 'friend' could be Kira and the 'showed off our notebooks' part could be them showing their abilities to kill. Anything mentioning a friend and the exchange or gain of any material object could be clues for Kira. Besides," Ebony shrugged, "saying straight up that she and her friend confirmed their Shinigami at the Tokyo Dome seems way too obvious. It's clearly a ruse to hide the real meeting place."

"Impressive," L commented while everyone stared at the albino girl in awe, "I was thinking the same thing. It would probably be best to set up as many cameras as possible in both Aoyama and Shibuya and send in as many plain clothed police officers as we can on the days mentioned. It is highly unlikely that anyone should be hurt since our officers will be dressed as regular people and merely be on the lookout for anyone suspicious. They won't engage, merely investigate them later."

"Makes sense, but who can we send?" Ebony asked, "We can't send in Asahi-san. His appearance practically screams 'I'm a police officer undercover!' No offense, Asahi-san," She added quickly.

"None taken," Soichiro sighed, knowing she was right.

"I'll go," Matsuda offered, "I fit right in at Aoyama and Shibuya."

"I'll go too," Light said. He interrupted when his father tried to object, "Don't worry, Dad. Aoyama and Shibuya are places I go to sometimes, and I am the one who would seem most natural hanging out with Matsui. And the only person the second Kira is interested in is Kira."

L mused over Light's offer. Saying the only person the second Kira is interested in is Kira wasn't a line he would throw out so casually if he was Kira, but on the other hand, Kira would want to go to these places to find the second Kira before the police could. He couldn't be sure since he didn't know exactly what powers either Kira possessed, but it stood to reason that Kira would want to go on the undercover missions to prevent the second Kira's capture if at all possible. Regardless, spending any more time on plans just increased the second Kira's chances of finding the true Kira and establishing a partnership. L really had no choice but to go with this option no matter how many variables there were.

"We will broadcast this diary tomorrow," L stated as he looked up at Soichiro, "Asahi-san, can you get cooperation from the police before tomorrow night's news?"

"Right. I'll do my best," The older man nodded.

"Also, this is very important," L gained everyone's attention, "It's true that this is a chance to catch Kira, or at least the second Kira. But at this point we must also think about Kira and the second Kira joining forces. I want to strengthen our security even more."

A kind of chill seemed to descend upon the task force with L's unsettling words. Only two people seemed unaffected.

"What do you mean?" Aizawa asked.

"Don't reveal that you are working on this case to anyone, of course," L began, his teacup held carefully with his thumb and index fingers, "Avoid going outside as police officers as much as possible, and I want you to destroy all photos of yourselves but the ones on your person. I've left no photos of myself anywhere. Even at To-Oh University, where I'm registered. Even the security at these hotels have been made to deactivate when we enter or leave."

Ebony found that rather sad. No photos of his youth at all. It reminded her of herself. She had no photos of herself when she was young either.

"I want you to gather up all your files at the police headquarters, all your photos at home, and the ones you've given away, and dispose of them."

"Well, I'm covered, then," Ebony grinned, "I've never been in front of a camera in my life!"

"…Ryuzaki," Soichiro spoke up hesitantly at first but then strengthened his voice, "does that mean you still suspect my son?"

"Unfortunately he's not totally in the clear, and that's part of it, but this is because we're assuming the second Kira only needs a face to kill the person."

'_Hasn't left any photos anywhere…eh?'_ Light took a discreet calming breath, _'I see…'_

"You're right, Ryuzaki," Light said, "It's impressive you were able to think that far. If Kira and the second Kira join hands and want to wipe out the entire investigation team…all they'd need is our pictures to kill us all. Even Ryuzaki, whose name is unknown to anyone."

"Yes, I only showed myself to all of you because I assumed Kira needed both a face and a name to kill," L said gravely, "The situation has changed now. A second Kira has appeared and Kira may also gain this ability. In order to prevent that, I would like to at least capture the second Kira during this opportunity."

-oooOooo-

Once Light was in the safety of the cab he was taking home, he allowed his mask to fall. There was something that had been bothering him during the entire meeting and only now was he really free to analyze it thoroughly.

Ebony.

He hadn't thought much on her presence in the beginning. He thought it might be L trying to put pressure on him, or maybe L was looking for someone to analyze him and not defend him like others would. Unbiased eyes, if you will. But now he wasn't so sure. When looking over the diary and then explaining her thoughts, the first entry she'd mentioned was the one about the notebooks, the same entry he believed to be referring to the Death Notes.

But…she couldn't know about the Death Notes, could she? It just wasn't possible. The likelihood of _three_ Shinigami coming down to the human world all at once was almost nonexistent, plus the fact that L had practically glued her to his side. She had almost zero opportunities to use a Death Note if she had one or talk to her Shinigami if one was following her. Light was certain that, knowing L, he had surely set up cameras at her job and probably even around To-Oh wherever she would have to be to go to her classes. Plus he probably timed how long it would normally take her to walk between her work and the university, the university and the hotel, and the hotel and her work. That is something he would do personally, so it was more than likely that L had done the same.

Basically, Ebony was locked down tighter than he was, so there was no way that she could have a Death Note and not have slipped up by now.

'_She's just more perceptive than she seems, that's all,'_ Light assured himself, calming his mind, _'L suggested the same thing, checking every location the second Kira mentioned, it's only natural for a good investigator to think of such a plan.'_

Still, he couldn't say he was completely comfortable with her being stuck with L so much. When two people were stuck together long enough, it was usually inevitable for them to develop deeper relationships than they normally would. Lack of options and all that. Light wasn't sure what he would do if Ebony developed feelings for L, the man he was aiming to kill as soon as possible. He didn't want to have to kill Ebony if she ever tried to stand in his way, not after he'd helped her to grow so much during their senior year. She really was almost like a sister to him, and he knew his father probably thought of her as another daughter as well.

He didn't want to have to kill family.

* * *

Author's Note: So here's the fifteenth chapter. I enjoyed writing this last part since it had some of Light's own thoughts in it. I didn't want to make him in love with Ebony since Kira/Light is pretty much incapable of loving a woman, but I wanted some kind of bond there, so I made him view her as a sister. I hope that's alright and even if it's not, I'm not changing it, so there!

**Lady of Dreams and Nightmares:** Ebony is pretty normal. Well, you know what I mean. Your guess just means you're wicked smart. Yay!

**Marisol Akyri:** No, I don't think Ebony heard you. By the way, should I make it that Watari tells Ebony when his birthday is? I can't decide.

**sun-sun kat:** Yes, that little cherry trick is going to be in here at some point and again, yes, Mello, Matt, and Near will be in this story. It wouldn't be a Death Note fanfic without them!

**LittleKittyShaoMao:** To be honest, the rumor of them dating was something I thought up after I'd already written that chapter and a ton of others after it. I just put it in there on a whim since it may be of use to me later. I'm glad that I unknowingly fulfilled your expectations!

**dawnblossoms:** I'm glad you like this story even though you're a faithful GaaSaku fan. Thank you for reviewing it. And yes, L rocks!

-HaleyJo


	16. How to Kill a Shinigami

Author's Note: I really wanted to post this chapter. I just love Rem! She's so cool!

* * *

**16. HOW TO KILL A SHINIGAMI**

A young blonde girl plopped down on the edge of her bed, sighing heavily. It was a lot of hard work being a model. Everyone always assumed it was an easy life, posing in cute outfits in exotic places, but it was a killer business. The littlest things could knock you down and keep you down for a long time. It was no place for people without a lot of dedication. She had many trinkets in her apartment room from her modeling gigs, a few of which bore her name.

_Amane Misa_.

"A Shinigami always has to have a Death Note, so to give one to a human, they need two," The girl sat up on her bed with her hands in her lap, "So this Ryuk who gave the Death Note to Kira tricked the Shinigami King and got a second copy."

"Yes," The deep response came from a tall, frightening creature that seemed to be made entirely of bleached white bones, fearsome-looking spikes adorning its shoulders, the lengths of its arms, its hips, and its calves, almost like armor. Its hair hung in lavender dreadlocks that turned to deeper purple at their tips. Two rows of white stitching were about its neck. Large, golden hoop earrings hung from its ears and white cloth wrapped around its forehead under its hair, the cloth covering its right eye while the other stared intimidatingly down at the blonde girl, a cat-slit pupil backed by gold. The being's lips were purple, two lines of the same color coming from its bottom lip and curving to beyond the corners of its mouth, two pearly-white fangs adding to its upsetting, chiseled face.

"You did the same, Rem?" Misa asked.

"No," The creature named Rem responded. There seemed to be a very slight ache in her voice, but the twenty-year-old didn't notice, "The Shinigami King isn't fooled that easily."

"Then how?"

"Let's just say…that I'm one of the few in the Shinigami Realm who knows…" The creature paused briefly before continuing, "how to kill a Shinigami."

"Ohhh," Misa leaned a bit closer, bouncing slightly on her bed, "…So you killed a Shinigami, took the Notebook, and gave it to me?"

"No…it's not that I killed him," Rem explained, "I just happened to be near when a Shinigami died…"

"Come on," The blonde girl got to her knees and leaned even closer, "Tell me how to kill a Shinigami!"

"…Don't tell anyone…" A triumphant 'ha!' came from the easily excited Misa, "The way to kill a Shinigami…is to make them fall in love with a human."

"…What a wonderful way to kill," The response didn't surprise Rem. The young model was a hopeless romantic, so she would naturally find death by love appealing no matter how sad a concept it was.

"There was a Shinigami named Gelus who spent all his time staring down from the Shinigami Realm at a young woman," Rem began the story, gesturing slightly with her large, webbed hand, "It's something you'd be laughed at in the Shinigami Realm these days, but I stayed quiet and watched. It hit me instantly that he was in love with the girl…"

Misa wondered briefly how Rem could have guessed at such a thing so easily, but Rem was continuing with the story, so she stayed silent.

"Seeing Gelus's death, I felt like I understood…" Rem paused for a moment, gathering her thoughts, Misa assumed, "Understood the reason why back in the days when the Shinigami were deeply involved in the human world, a Shinigami would die from time to time.

"Gelus was always watching this girl," Rem said as memories drifted before her mental vision.

"_It's today, isn't it? Her last day of life," Rem stated as she approached a small, awkward-looking Shinigami who greatly resembled a patch-work rag doll, precariously held together with thick stitching._

"_But she looks so healthy," Gelus said sadly, his single eye fixated on the pink hat worn by a young woman walking the dark streets, "Why today?"_

"_Probably an accident or something," Rem offered, "The lifespan of the humans isn't something that we decide…"_

"I was interested in how she would die," Rem continued, "so I watched on with him. The girl was walking alone that night_._ Then suddenly a man appeared and confessed his love to the girl. I believe you call these people 'stalkers'?" She got a small nod from Misa, "The girl obviously turned down this man, who she didn't know."

"_Then I'll kill you and then myself!" The bespectacled man yelled, brandishing a huge kitchen knife._

"_Wow, what a way to go," Rem commented as they watched this tragedy through the portal, "Who would have imagined she'd be stabbed to death…" Distracted by a sudden rustling sound, Rem looked to see Gelus flipping open his Death Note and lifting his pen awkwardly, "Hey…"_

"Gelus then did what a Shinigami should never do. He saved the girl by writing the name of the man who was going to stab her into his Death Note," Rem revealed, "Because of the Shinigami's actions, the man stopped his attack on the girl and died alone in the street a few minutes later from a heart attack. The girl never knew exactly what happened.

"But it was a bad move," Rem continued, her voice rather hollow, "Shinigami exist to shorten human life…they exist to take life…Extending life is out of the question. At that moment, Gelus became sand and rust and who knows what…and died. Only his Death Note remained. His life was transferred to the girl he saved."

"…If he hadn't been in love with her," Misa wondered after Rem concluded the sad story, "then he could have killed the man and not died?"

"Exactly," Rem nodded, "Gelus died because of the desire to extend the girl's life. A Shinigami is not allowed to use the Death Note to extend human life," Rem explained more thoroughly, "He failed as a Shinigami…and thus he died."

"Then…that night…" Misa looked as the floor as she held her Death Note to her chest, "The one who saved me was a Shinigami named Gelus."

"Yes," Rem pointed toward her with one large, webbed finger, "That's why that Death Note is yours."

"…Yeah…I get it," Misa sighed as she flopped back onto her bed, the black notebook still held against her chest, "So to kill a Shinigami you have to make them fall in love with a human, and have them save that person. And they have to kill someone to extend the life of the person they love, so it's really difficult."

"Give it up," Rem stated flatly, "You can't kill me."

"Oh? You knew?" Misa giggled, "But now I have another thing I can tell Kira. 'So, do you know how to kill a Shinigami?' I asked him on the video to come up with a good way for us to meet. I wonder what's taking so long for him to respond? Maybe I should send another message…"

Rem wished that Misa would give up this desire to meet Kira. He was clearly dangerous and would think nothing of erasing Misa's existence from the world, especially since she'd recklessly given away secret information over the TV. The real Kira would not tolerate such exposure and was surely looking for a way to either use Misa or kill her, neither of which Rem wanted for this girl. She'd already seen what happened to people when they allowed themselves to be used for the personal gain of others, and she never wanted to see such things again.

* * *

Author's Note: Like I said, I love Rem. I was so mad at Light when she died and I was mad at Misa since she was willing to give up all memory of Rem in order to be with Light, a guy she didn't really know. How mean of them! Yeah, please review me!

-HaleyJo


	17. My Very Good Friend

Author's Note: I have 73 reviews! 73! That is so cool! People seemed disappointed with the last chapter because there was no LxEbony in it, but oh well. I liked that chapter. Anywho, here's chapter 17. Enjoy!

* * *

**17. MY VERY GOOD FRIEND**

Ebony's hand fiddled incessantly with her dime earring, her nerves a little strung out. Since they were attending the same school, she and Light walked together to L's newest hotel. She was not comfortable walking with Light, the mass-murderer Kira. She knew nothing would happen to her, but it was still a bit unsettling to be so close to someone who had already killed hundreds, probably thousands of people by this point. Matsuda met them at the entrance, smiling brightly at them both. Ebony noticed that his face seemed a bit flushed and wondered if he was getting sick. A nasty bug had been spreading all over the place in recent weeks, so it would be no big surprise if he was coming down with something.

"Light-kun. Ebony-chan," L greeted them when they were let in, "You've come at a good time. We just received a video message from the second Kira."

"Again?" Light asked as he pulled his schoolbag from his shoulder and set it down by the wall. Ebony wheeled her backpack to sit beside it, "That was fast."

"Yes. It says it will be the final one," L said as he lifted the remote and hit the 'play' button. The robotic voice filtered through the speakers along with a sense of unease that affected everyone in the room.

"_I have decided to not contact Kira. I thank the police for warning me,"_ The voice was saying, the crude Kira name screaming out from the TV screen, _"But I will help Kira and rid the world of evil until Kira accepts me. I will first pass judgment on the criminals Kira hasn't yet punished."_

The next sentence caused a chill to run through most everyone in the room.

"_And then I will spread this power to those who deserve it, and make the world a better place."_

Ebony cocked her head slightly. Spread the power? Was that possible…? She looked to L, wondering what he was going to conclude from all this.

"Seeing this…" L began, his hands resting on his bent knees, "makes me feel that Kira and the second Kira have joined forces."

"Why do you think so?" Light asked.

"You didn't feel it? I figured you'd get the same impression I did, Light-kun," L commented as he lifted a hand to reach for one of the doughnuts in a box on the coffee table, "First, after wanting to meet Kira that much, the sudden one-eighty. Also," L lifted a doughnut and proceeded to eat it, "the thing about passing judgment on criminals Kira hasn't, in order to be accepted. Why wasn't this done before? He just didn't think to do it? Most likely, the person was told by Kira to do it. And Kira ordered that their cooperation be kept secret."

"Makes sense," Ebony commented as she moved to sit beside L's chair rather than on its arm, "Kira must have been forced to come up with a quick plan as soon as possible and thus was unable to thoroughly consider the consequences and risk of exposure. Maybe the second Kira pinned him down?"

"Perhaps," L agreed around his food, "It is possible that Kira wanted to see how we would react to such a serious blow their joining is. Though this makes it even less likely that Light-kun is Kira."

"What do you mean, Ryuzaki?" Soichiro asked. The hope in his voice was painful to hear.

"He thinks Light would have had the second Kira go along with her plan to kill L," Ebony spoke up, "He also would have wanted to avoid telling L that he had gotten the second Kira under his thumb. He would have wanted to keep that as a secret advantage."

"Yes," L agreed. He then grabbed another doughnut and offered it to Ebony, who took it with a smile.

"Ryuzaki," Light called L's attention, "I wouldn't do that if I were Kira."

"Why not?" L asked, his eyes still on the top of Ebony's head.

"If you're L, then I know L's personality," Light explained, "No matter the threat, there's no way L would appear on TV. And there's no way he'd let someone take his place. You would definitely think of a way out of it."

"Heh, can't get anything by you…" L turned his head to face Light.

"Light," Said male turned to his father, "Even if you're just making a point, stop saying things like 'if I were Kira…' Even though I know you're not Kira, it doesn't sit very well with me."

"Yeah…Sorry, Dad," Ebony had to hold in a scoff at his insincere apology, "But I want to be honest with Ryuzaki in order to solve this case as soon as possible and clear my name. I only say things like that because I'm not Kira…You're worrying too much, Dad."

"Yagami-san," Ebony peeked over the arm of L's chair to see the older man, "You're being a dork. We have to look at every possible angle even if they aren't the most appealing. No offense about the 'dork' comment."

"None taken," Soichiro sighed, knowing she was right.

"Yes…Light-kun isn't Kira…Or rather, I don't want Light-kun to be Kira…because," L mused aloud, his spoon lightly clinking against the china cup he had filled with coffee sweetened with three sugar cubes, "Light-kun is my first-ever friend."

Light took a small moment to recover before smiling what others would assume to be a gentle smile, but it was far from it beneath the surface, "Yeah…you're a good friend to me too, Ryuzaki."

"Thanks."

"I miss you at school," He continued, "I'd like to play tennis with you again."

"Yes. Same here," L gave him a tiny smile before turning back around. He seemed to be a little more hunched than usual, "Kira and the second Kira…Once we solve this case and rid the world of them, I'd enjoy that. I hope that day comes soon," He sighed almost inaudibly, "But right now I'm afraid to go outside or even show my face to anyone. It may be wise to go back into hiding again…"

Ebony felt a twinge of pain in her heart and reached up to touch his hand, trying to offer him what comfort she could. He didn't seem to mind that her fingers were still a bit sticky from her doughnut.

Ignoring the others for a moment, L looked down at the girl sitting by his seat. She was leaning against his chair, only her rosy eyes visible over the armrest. Her right hand was curled slightly over the armrest, the fingers of her left still resting gently against his hand.

L didn't really understand why she spent her energies on comforting him so often. He had lived most of his life without comfort, save for what he received from Watari, and even those cases were few and far between since the elderly man knew that L preferred to not be comforted. That would mean that all the demands the world made of him did indeed take their toll on his psyche. It would mean that he really could buckle under the weight of the world.

When everyone was gone, L moved his hand to Ebony's hair, gently pulling his long fingers through the silky tresses. She seemed a bit confused by his actions, but she rested her head against the chair instead of pulling away. She was tired.

"Thank you, Ebony-chan."

"Hm?" Ebony looked up at him, "For what?"

"…For being here," L responded, "I'm not entirely used to it, but it's nice."

"Hm, you're welcome, then," Ebony shut her eyes, feeling a little dizzy all of a sudden. She'd been battling dizzy spells all day and had felt unusually tired, never fully perking up in the least bit.

"Are you feeling well, Ebony-chan?" L asked. She would normally divert the topic somewhere else as quickly as possible or ignore it completely whenever he said such things, not accept it without fuss. Now that he thought of it, Ebony had seemed tired and spacey earlier before leaving for school, her eyes a little cloudy. L's fingertips strayed from her hair to her forehead, "You feel warm."

"I'm fine," Ebony attempted to stand, but her legs seemed quite unwilling to hold her weight and gave way.

Luckily for her, L had anticipated this and stood just in time to catch her, bringing both of them to their knees.

"You're sick," L stated as he laid his hand against her face, which was now rather flushed and not because they were so close. She was a little too out of it to really notice, "I'll call Watari."

Ebony tried to protest, but by then L had already lifted her from the floor with surprising ease considering his skinny frame and deposited her onto a couch, pulling the throw from its back to wrap her in it like a cocoon since she started shivering. One hand kept its fingers against her face while the other fished his cell phone from his pocket, holding it in that funny way of his. Ebony was a bit uncomfortable with how close he was, staring at her face as though he could find the source of her sickness, but just glared back weakly as L asked Watari to come to check on Ebony.

"I'm not a porcelain doll, you know," Ebony grumbled, her voice a little rough from the cough she'd developed not long after L finished his call. L didn't have time to respond before Watari was at the door, his blue-gray eyes concerned behind his glasses.

Ebony was obedient as Watari check her over, taking her temperature, looking at her throat, and asking her how she'd been feeling that day. Watari, on the other hand, was more than a little amused by how L was constantly hovering over his shoulder. He stayed out of the way more or less, but that didn't negate the fact that he wasn't giving them much space either.

"I believe you've caught that nasty bug that's been going around, my dear," Watari concluded as he straightened back up, "Nothing to do until it goes away on its own, I'm afraid."

"Lovely," Ebony sunk down into the throw until only her disgruntled eyes could be seen. She noticed L grinning around his thumb and popped back up to glare at him, "What the hell are you grinning at?!"

"I sometimes wonder that myself," L's grin only widened as Ebony tried to work up the energy to talk back to him, or probably hit him.

"Ryuzaki, try not to harass her so much right now," Watari gently reprimanded the childish twenty-four-year-old, "She needs her rest."

"Thank you, Watari," Ebony grinned at him. L gave Watari a look that very nearly resembled a pout, as much of a pout as his stoic face could give, anyway.

"You should go to bed," L stated in retaliation. Against her wishes, Ebony was again lifted into L's arms and carried across the room and down a short hallway to the room she'd claimed as hers until they moved hotels again. L somehow got the door open and walked to the corner, depositing Ebony onto what seemed to be a nest of thick blankets and pillows. As much fun as it was to be carried around, Ebony's pride felt bruised.

But she couldn't complain much since the warmth and security of the covers began lulling her to sleep. So instead of arguing, she snuggled down in the blankets, glad to be able to rest. When she heard L about to leave, she spoke up, her voice very soft since she was halfway asleep already.

"Ryuzaki?"

"Hm?" L looked at her over his shoulder.

"You said Light-san is your friend," L had to concentrate to hear her since her voice was heavily laced with fatigue. He assumed that she was about to tell him how being friends with Light was a bad idea, but what she finally said took him by surprise, "Am I your friend too?"

L wasn't sure what to say. Did she not know that she was his friend? Why not? They had been living together more or less for a little over a month now, and even though they bickered often, there was never any real anger or harmful intent behind their words.

"Yes," L said at length, not knowing that Ebony had had a growing sense of dread building in her gut while he paused that filtered away instantly with that one word, "You are my very good friend, Ebony-chan."

"Mm. Good," Ebony yawned and rolled over, allowing her eyes to close, "'Cause you're my best friend."

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Author's Note: I like this chapter. It's so cute! I hope this satisfies those of you who were disappointed with chapter 16 because there was no LxEbony in it. There was plenty here, so be happy!

**MrsGosh-Chan: **I like Misa too. She's dim enough to be amusing, but not so much that she gets annoying. That's only later after having lived in a loveless life with Light for six years. She also probably wouldn't have ever used her Death Note had Kira not appeared. The arrogant prick.

**MythCreatorWriter: **What do you mean exactly by not letting my emotions with the characters? What does that mean? Anyway, I'm glad I seem to be writing Misa right. Thank you for your review.

**Lady of Dreams and Nightmares:** I love Mello and Matt too, and I can't tell you! That would ruin the story! I may take your advice on the cake thing. I've thought it may be too corny, but maybe it will be so corny that it will work. Like Light's reaction to his father's heart attack.

**Marisol Akyri:** I hope this satisfies your LxEbony craving. I aim to please and piss off people. Whichever one seems most appropriate or amusing at the given moment.

**Hao'sAnjul:** Here's LxEbony. Is this good enough? I think so. I hope you do too!

**SugarLandBabyGirl:** I' glad you still liked the chapter even though L and Ebony weren't in it. It needed to be in here. I know mostly what I'm doing. This should make up for it. I hope so!

Thank you one and all! Please review for me.

-HaleyJo


	18. Warnings

Author's Note: I like this chapter. Just so you know, Ebony isn't in it, but L is, so that should keep you happy. At least I hope so. Enjoy!

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**18. WARNINGS**

L held the small book up before his face as he did everything, glancing over the lines though he really wasn't interested in what he was reading. He'd read the same passage over and over again while he waited, his knees tucked against his chest and his toes curled around the edge of the bench, his untied tennis shoes sitting just under him. The weather was very nice today, cool with a slight breeze, the kind of weather Ebony would love if she hadn't been so sick and thus unable to go outside to enjoy it. She would have preferred more clouds though. She said her eyes had always been rather sensitive to light, which made sense since she was an albino.

As he expected, Light was soon walking his way with the dark haired woman who had upset Ebony the other day, Takada Kiyomi. They were apparently dating now, but it hadn't been very long yet, or so Mogi had told him. Just since yesterday.

"Oh, Yagami-kun. Hello," L acknowledged the other male as though their running into each other was mere coincidence, which was completely untrue, and the Yagami boy knew it.

"Takada, I'd like to talk to him in private for a moment," Light addressed the woman beside him, "Can I see you later?"

"Huh? Oh…sure."

"You sure that was ok?" L asked as the woman left, though not before giving him a disdainful glance that clearly said his odd mannerisms made him beneath her, not worthy of her notice. She wasn't worthy of his notice either, though, especially since she had made Ebony anything other than happy.

"Never mind her. Are you sure you should be out here?" Light asked, feigning concern, "I thought you were worried about being seen."

"I realized it would be fine as long as you're not Kira," L replied easily, "Since you're the only one on the outside who knows I'm L, aside from Ebony-chan, of course."

"Speaking of which," Light commented lightly, "Everyone here seems to think you two are dating."

"Yes, I'm aware of that," L bit down on his thumbnail, "I believe it was Takada-san who started that rumor."

"So it is a rumor? Nothing more?"

"Correct. Why do you ask?" L tilted his head to the side slightly, hiding his slight irritation at how Light was apparently a bit protective of the albino girl he used to tutor.

"Sorry, it's just that Ebony's like a little sister to me," Light explained, shrugging his shoulders, "I can see how she looks up to you, but since you're L, it's not like you can stay near her after the Kira case is closed. You'll have to leave eventually, and I don't want you to lead her on only to break her heart in the end."

'_His words can be easily translated down to "Stay the hell away from Ebony",'_ L deduced. This was a good thing. It meant that the likelihood of Light ever resolving to killing Ebony was rather small, that she was safer than your average person.

Deciding that responding to his words wouldn't be the best idea, L switched the subject back to Kira. He'd thought coming back to college today would be a good change of pace since Light had said he'd missed him at school. College was fun as long as you didn't die. Light had said that his interactions with Takada were because she was the only person at the school anywhere close to his level of intelligence, though L suspected that wasn't the real reason. Light had been seeing girls before now, though, so it might not mean anything. After all, he was a very attractive teenage boy, so it made sense for him to date. But it almost seemed like he was covering something up. All L needed to do was find out what that something was. The second Kira, maybe? Ebony's deductions of the second Kira being female seemed to be growing more and more certain since it would explain Light suddenly seeing all these girls. It might be to cover up which one of them was the second Kira.

"Shall we get some cake from the cafeteria?" L asked as he dropped his legs down to slide on his shoes. Light agreed in order keep up the pretense of their friendship.

"Light!! There you are!!"

L turned to the voice, seeing a young girl with the top of her blonde hair pulled up into two ponytails, wearing gothic style clothing. Kind of like what Ebony usually wore, only hers were slightly more…provocative. Not inappropriate, but certainly flirting with that fine line.

"I have a shoot near here, so I came by! Though I have to be back before 2 o'clock," Her hazel eyes twinkled innocently as she held her bag behind her back with two hands, "So anyone can just walk onto this campus…"

'_Misa…you idiot!'_ Light had to really work hard to keep his anger and fear off his face at Misa's presence. What the hell was wrong with this girl?! Why couldn't she just use her brain like she had with the second Kira videos and stay away from him in public?! He had explained to her over and over that them being seen together in public was extremely dangerous, but she just didn't get it!

"One of your friends, Light?" Misa looked over at the slouched man standing a couple feet away, his hands stuffed into the pockets of his worn blue jeans. She'd never seen somebody care so little about others' opinions that they would walk around in public looking like they had just rolled out of bed not two minutes before. He was pretty weird-looking, but he was Light's friend, so she may as well make a good first impression, "He's really unique and cool! I'm Light's girlfriend, Amane Misa. Nice to meet you."

"I'm Ryuga Hideki," L responded as pieces of the puzzle started falling into place again for the first time in quite a while, since Ebony suggested the second Kira was a girl. If Light's suddenly calm expression meant anything, this girl was the one who was the second Kira. The one who could kill with faces. Misa questioned his name, which would make sense since it was the same name as that idol singer, as Light said when he grabbed her by the shoulders, but her question seemed more like she knew he was lying rather than acknowledging his name was the same as a famous person's.

Light's sudden bravado slipped away, leaving panic in its wake when he glanced back at L. Why was he grinning around his finger like that? L only grinned when he had a sudden epiphany or whenever Ebony was nearby. He grinned a lot then too, but she wasn't here. Could he possibly have noticed Misa's reaction to his name, despite the fact that most people would be confused by the name?

He heard Ryuk choke on a laugh when L said he was jealous, that he'd been a fan since her appearance in the March issue of that _Eighteen _magazine. L knew of Misa? How? She wasn't that popular yet that even complete recluses would know of her. However, this _was_ L, the greatest detective on earth. But he was obviously lying about the being a fan part.

Misa was obviously getting really popular, though, since they were soon surrounded by people who knew of her. Misa was naturally thrilled by the attention while Light wished she had never shown up, L's name be damned. Knowledge of his name was just not worth this kind of risk.

Cool as a cucumber, L easily slid Misa's cell phone from her bag, intentionally grazing her backside so as to distract her from any movements her bag might have made from him digging around in it for her phone. She luckily wasn't mad, thinking it to be a joke, which was what L played it off to be. She was probably used to such things, being a model and all, and from just being very attractive in general.

Misa's manager suddenly arrived and pulled the girl away, something both Light and L were thankful for since they couldn't make any actions against each other with her there drawing a crowd. Once she was gone, the crowd dispersed rather quickly as though nothing interesting had happened.

"Well then, I'll be heading to class now," L said as he began to turn, his hands back in their pockets, "We have psychology together, right?"

"Yeah, I'll see you there after I go to the bathroom," That was a good excuse because of its simplicity. Everyone had to go to the bathroom at some point during the day, so you really couldn't question it, not without sounding absolutely ridiculous.

Light quickly pulled the extra cell phone Misa had given him last night and dialed her number. Saying L's name in front of her manager wouldn't be a problem, and now he could finally get rid of the man who had been a thorn in his side for almost half a year now. He had twenty-three days to get rid of him, during which he could deflect suspicion away from himself and if L died in an accident long after Misa had seen him, no one had any reason to suspect him of being behind the death. Especially since they didn't know that he could kill by means other that heart attacks.

'_Farewell, Ryuga,'_ Light hit the dial button and held the phone to his ear.

As soon as he heard the ring from his phone, he heard another phone go off at the same time. The sudden noise drew his attention and he almost couldn't believe what he was seeing.

'_No way…'_

L had stolen Misa's cell phone from her bag, back when that huge crowd had been buzzing about. He was now holding it before him by its cord. This wasn't good. This meant he suspected Misa if he was going so far as to steal from her.

"Yes?" He heard L's voice both through the phone and from about ten feet away, "Hello?"

"Ryuga, that's not funny," Light said, knowing L knew full well that it was him on the line.

"Oh, looks like someone dropped this cell phone in the crowd earlier," L said, holding the phone in that weird way of his. It was a pity this wouldn't work, but he'd known it would be a long shot anyway. Light would have confirmed that it was Misa on the other end of the line before he said anything incriminating, "Hello?"

"Yeah, that's Misa's phone, so I'll return it to her," Light was saying.

"Oh, sure. Oh, now it's my phone," L handed the phone back to Light before his own phone went off, "Yes…Yes…So you did it. Yes, understood."

'_Did what?'_

"I believe this will be a case of good news and bad news for you, Yagami-kun," L said as he snapped his phone shut and stuffed it back in his pocket, "Amane Misa has been apprehended on suspicion of being the second Kira."

Light's shocked face was wonderful to watch.

"An examination of Amane's room produced cat hair, cosmetic products, and clothing fibers similar to those found in the adhesive of the envelopes the second Kira used to mail the tapes, along with other evidence," L explained, also telling him that the arrest would be kept secret, along with the arrest of Misa's manager from finding illegal drugs on her person.

This was horrible. Just when did L start suspecting Misa? Where had he messed up? Well, that didn't matter. What mattered was that the existence of the Death Notes was now in danger of being revealed to the one person it needed to be kept secret from at all costs.

And that other Shinigami…Rem….who was completely on Misa's side…had warned him that if anything happened to her, he would be killed…

This was not good.

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Author's Note: I hope this chapter was enjoyable. I know a lot of it came from the manga, but the situation worked well for what I wanted.

**Mel1983:** Since you are the person who inspired me to post this story despite my fumbling with my OC Ebony, I updated again today since you asked me to. Hee!

-HaleyJo


	19. Flexibility

Author's Note: I enjoyed writing this chapter though I had to go over it about five times before I was satisfied with it. Oh well. The lengths I do to for my own satisfaction. Oh hell! I sounded like Light! _EVIL!!_

* * *

**19. FLEXIBILITY**

L was hard-pressed to avoid laughing when he heard a couple loud thumps and a few choice curses from the direction of Ebony's room. She had been cooped up in there for about six days now, but had finally started getting better last night. He had known that she would try to get out of the room the second she could, which was probably the reason for all the ruckus. Knowing Ebony, she had more than likely gotten tangled up in the blanket and pillow nest she'd been sleeping in and fallen to the floor in her eagerness to escape the bedroom.

The poor girl had really been quite ill. Watari had rarely left her side the entire time, trying to get her temperature down and get her to at least try to eat something that she could keep on her stomach. L would have been hovering over the girl as well if the Kira case hadn't taken precedence, though perhaps that was a good thing. He had never taken care of a sick person before, so he probably would have been at a loss.

"What's going on?" Ebony asked as she finally made it out of the 'Blankets From Hell' and stumbled her way into the main room. She was still a bit weak, but overall much better.

"Ebony-chan! How are you feeling?" Matsuda asked. All they'd been told was that she had gotten sick.

"I'm fine, Matsui-san. Thanks for asking," Ebony smiled at him before turning to L, "So, what's been happening?" She then actually looked at the monitors and her face went blank. Light being in confinement she could understand, but the blonde girl and Soichiro? "Ok, what'd I miss?"

"Amane Misa was apprehended on suspicion of being the second Kira," L explained, "A good deal of evidence linking her to the tapes the second Kira sent to Sakura TV was found during an examination of Amane's room. She was silent for about three days before she started asking for someone to kill her and almost committed suicide by biting her tongue. She seemed to still be communicating with someone, and then she lost consciousness. Once she reawakened, she seemed to not understand where she was and assumed she has been kidnapped by some stalker."

'_Stalker? Makes sense, her being a rising model,'_ Ebony thought on her own, keeping her musings to herself for the time being.

"Ok, so why are Light-san and his father also confined?" Ebony asked.

"Both volunteered for it."

"…Beg your pardon?"

"Light-kun came in just after Amane reawakened and he confessed that he feared he may be unknowingly acting as Kira somehow," L explained. Ebony's look of obvious contempt for the very idea of Light not knowing he was Kira was noted and filed carefully away, "He requested confinement, stating that he could not pursue Kira if he suspected himself by even a little bit. Yagami-san requested confinement due to fear of his reaction should it be proven that his son is Kira."

"But…Soichiro-san is a good man," Ebony protested, "He could never do anything outside the law no matter how much he might want to."

"I agree," L said simply, "But he insisted."

"Well, then why didn't you not let him?" Ebony demanded, placing her hands firmly on the arm of his chair, "All he's doing is torturing himself! You know Soichiro-san has a bad habit of shouldering the wrong-doings of others!"

"Yes, but it was the only way to pacify him," L responded, placing one finger against Ebony's forehead to push her out of his personal bubble, "He would never have been content to be free while his son was not. And he is as comfortable as he can be in these conditions."

Aizawa and Matsuda watched the interactions between Ryuzaki and Ebony intently. This was the first time they'd seen her actually disagree with him on something. She usually either kept her opinions to herself or backed him all the way.

"In all honesty, I should place you under confinement as well."

Everything was silent for a moment and, remarkably, Matsuda was the first to recover.

"What? Wh-why lock up Ebony-chan?" He asked. He'd had no idea that Ebony had ever been a suspect. It seemed like Ebony hadn't known either if the surprised look on her face meant anything.

"Ebony-chan has very rarely been surprised by anything that has been unrolling since Kira came into existence," L explained, keeping his gaze on Ebony's face, searching for her reactions, "It is almost as though she knows more than she is telling, which leads me to wonder why."

Ebony glanced back at the monitors, her eyes showing a wavering within. She knew something, but was she going to tell him…?

"Ok," Ebony shrugged, "If you feel the need to lock me up, do so. I've been through worse. And I don't have anything to worry about since I'm not Kira, the second Kira, or aiding them in any way."

Ebony was completely calm as silver cuffs were placed around her wrists and ankles – loose enough for her to walk but not run – and had a blindfold tied over her eyes. She only flinched a bit when the earmuffs were placed over her ears, cutting off all sound. She followed wherever the hand on her shoulder led her, needing to calm herself down when she was led into a car for a time before they finally stopped and she was let out.

"Excuse me, but who's leading me?" Ebony asked. She was speaking rather loudly since she couldn't hear herself, "Tap once if I'm right. Watari?"

Nothing.

"Mochi-san?"

Still nothing.

"Oh. Then you're Aihara-san," She smiled as she got one tap on the shoulder, "Couldn't be Ryuzaki, and Ryuzaki doesn't ever let Matsui-san do anything, so it couldn't be him either."

"Ebony-chan is pretty smart," Matsuda said as they watched her being led to a cell through yet another monitor, the one under Misa's and to the left of Soichiro's, "How come she's never helped in the investigation before?"

"She has," L stated, "She led us to the conclusion that the second Kira was a female infatuated with Kira."

"Oh, right," Matsuda rubbed his neck, embarrassed. He seemed to always be saying stupid things. Aizawa was now sitting Ebony down on the cot, her facing the wall, and removing her earmuffs and blindfold. Matsuda watched as L reached forward to another microphone that had been installed and hit the left button.

"_Ebony-chan,"_ Ebony perked up from hearing his voice, _"Please continue facing the wall even after your blindfold is removed until you can no longer hear Aihara-san's footsteps."_

Ebony obeyed, staying still and staring at the cracks in the wall until the echoing sound Aizawa's footsteps faded beyond her senses, then she turned around and observed her surroundings carefully. It was dark beyond her cell, probably done on purpose, but she could see just fine. There were cells everywhere, like in a prison, but she was alone. A single camera was pointed out at her from just outside the iron bars and a sink was situated on the back wall beyond the end of the cot she was sitting on. She shifted a bit on the edge of the cot and looked up at the camera.

"How're the others doing?" Ebony asked, "Is Soichiro-san ok?"

"_We can't tell you that, Ebony-chan,"_ L's listless voice came through the tiny speaker just under the camera, _"You understand."_

"Yeah. Makes sense, I guess," Ebony then shifted again, frowning at her restraints. She lifted her feet and shook them, "Is all this really necessary?"

"_I'm afraid so,"_ L replied, _"We are still unsure of how Kira kills. We must take precautions."_

Ebony frowned, contemplating her options. Then she placed her feet on the cot and shifted her weight so she was mimicking L's unique sitting position. Hunching over to the point of having her chin nearly to her ankles, Ebony pulled her bound hands under her rear and rolled backwards onto her back, moving her hands out from under her feet so her hands were now in front of her. Since she had dressed as comfortably as she could; in her black leggings and a form-fitting black, long-sleeved, wide-necked shirt, this was a very simple task for her. She didn't even have her hip holster, something she'd protested vehemently against before L finally threatened to take it by force.

After completing her first task, Ebony proceeded to work the cuffs from around her wrists. Bringing her fingers in to an impossible degree, Ebony slipped the silver cuffs over her hands and fingers with little trouble, letting them fall to the floor with a clatter. After flexing her fingers back into place and massaging them for a moment, Ebony reached for her ankles and began the same process. Her bones could be heard as she shifted them out of the way so she could slide the links from her ankles, over her heels and off her feet. Those soon joined the cuffs that had bound her wrists only moments before. More sounds could be heard as she pressed the bones back into place, twisting her feet and working her ankles to make sure everything was back where it was supposed to be. That done, Ebony took the cuffs and tossed them beyond the bars of her cell and then proceeded to stretched out on her cot leisurely, feeling much better with the removal of the handcuffs.

"Woah!" Matsuda gaped at the screen, his eyes the size of dinner plates. Even Aizawa's jaw seemed to have come unhinged from the rest of his skull, "Di-did you guys see that? She just pulled a Houdini!"

"No, there were no tricks," L disagreed, also completely amazed by what he had just witnessed, "Ebony-chan seems to be remarkably flexible."

"That was amazing," Aizawa marveled, a bit disgusted by the crunching, snapping sounds her bones and tendons had been making.

L made sure to remember this, as it could come in handy later on.

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Author's Note: You guys need to stop making me want to review so fast with all your 81 reviews. At this rate, I'll catch up with myself! Nooo!

**MythCreatorWriter:** Ok, I get it. I thought that was what you meant, but I wanted to be sure. L stealing Misa's phone is one of my favorite parts of the Death Note saga as well. It's just so funny since Light was all like 'Farewell Ryuga.' and then L was all 'Ha ha! I stole her phone and confined her!' He doesn't really say that, but you know what I mean.

**IvoryCrayon:** Don't worry about not being able to review the second you read the chapter. I've done stuff like that and have even forgotten to review someone entirely. I would be too lazy to write a proper review at 3:30 AM as well.

**sun-sun kat:** I'm glad you liked how she asked L if they were friends. I figured her insecurities would come out when she wasn't focused enough to hide them, like when she's sick, for example. I look forward to her and Misa interacting soon as well, but be patient with me, please.

A big super huge thank you to everyone. Please continue reviewing for the...Holy crap, I'm at chapter 19 here already! Dang! The creativity imp must have given me a major concussion when it hit me!

-HaleyJo


	20. Confinement

Author's Note: I wanted to post again before my computer time ran out for the day. My Mom holds dictatorship over my laptop! It's horrible! Anywho, enjoy!

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**20. CONFINEMENT**

_-ooo-Day Five-ooo-_

"The Chief looks worse than Light and Amane and Ebony-chan…"

"Yeah, understandably. It's been five days, and no newly announced criminals have been killed. It must be horrible for a father."

"It's now pretty much proven that Light is Kira."

It had been five days since Light, Soichiro, and Ebony had been confined with no access to the outside world whatsoever and the only human contact they had was when they were brought food or, in Light and Misa's case, helped to the bathroom. Criminals had yet to begin dying again, having stopped as soon as Light, Ebony, and Soichiro were confined. Soichiro was still adamant on staying in confinement until Light was proven innocent or guilty. It was getting hard to watch.

L had been certain that the Kira killings would continue despite Light's confinement, but they had halted instantly. Could Light really have been unaware that he was Kira…?

'_No, that's not like Yagami Light. It's not like Kira. Kira knew what he was doing. How could he not?'_

Ebony, on the other hand, seemed completely fine. They'd tried restraining her again, but she wiggled right out of them again like she had the first time, so they just let her be. She moved around a lot, stretching and moving about as much as she could in her limited space. When asked, Ebony had said that she didn't want her body to become too atrophied from minimal activity. She said you should always have your body in good condition should Fate decide to screw you over.

No one could really argue with that.

_-ooo-Day Seven-ooo-_

A white button clicked.

"Light-kun, it's only been a week now," L said, gaining the teenage sociopath's attention. He truly did look like some hardened criminal sitting there as he did, hunched over by the cot and glaring into the darkness beyond his cell bars, "Are you alright?"

"_Yeah…I know I must look pretty bad in here, but…this pride…I'll have to…"_ Light's hands clenched behind his back, _"…__**get rid of it**__."_

"Huh?" Ryuk glanced over at Light from his contorted, upside-down position by the wall. He then flipped upright and began untwisting himself, "Okey-dokey! Later."

With that, the tall, black-clad, pale blue-skinned Shinigami melted through the wall to Light's right, searching for an apple before going back home.

Everything suddenly changed. Just a second ago Yagami Light had been acting like a resigned killer, but now he was claiming his innocence and demanding to be set free to help hunt down Kira. Recalling Light's earlier words to not release him regardless of anything he might say, L ignored his pleas, though he would have done that anyway. His dark eyes flickered over the other monitors, seeing how tired Misa and Soichiro looked and how not tired Ebony looked.

It was like what had happened to Amane Misa.

L listened to the rain pouring outside, feeling her nerves kick up a notch or two due to the noise. He suddenly wished he had Ebony back here so he could hold her hand. Doing so all but cured him of his unease with rain storms.

_-ooo-Day Fifteen-ooo-_

On day fifteen, Matsuda entered the room in a storm, waving around a newspaper announcing Kira's return by killing two weeks worth of criminals all at once. He quickly informed the Chief, which put more pressure on L since Light was claiming his innocence and with Kira's return, it seemed that he was indeed innocent. He refused to let Matsuda tell Light, though, wanting to get a confession from him by saying criminals were still not being killed. When that fell through, L turned to Misa.

"Amane, you really don't know who Kira is?"

Misa sighed, _"That again? I wish I knew,"_ A small smile peeked at her lips, "_Kira's a hero. He punished the burglar who killed my parents."_

'_What the heck is going on?'_ L couldn't tell up from down anymore. How was this happening? It didn't make any sense! He pressed the button for the speaker to Ebony's cell, "Ebony-chan?"

"_Aye?"_ L saw Ebony look up at the camera from where she was stretched backwards by the wall, her arms stretched to their limits above her head and her torso twisted to see the camera, _"What do you want, Ryuzaki?"_

"Criminals have begun to die again," Both Aizawa and Matsuda exchanged looks. Why was he telling Ebony this and not Light? "What do you make of it?"

"_Make of it?"_ Ebony frowned before looking up at the ceiling, stretching further and feeling the satisfying pops in her back. Even though he was more than a little socially retarded, L could deduce that it wasn't entirely proper to be admiring Ebony's body at that moment, its gentle but obvious curves defined by her clinging outfit, _"Means there's someone still out there acting as Kira, I guess. Why do you ask?"_

"Just curious. Thank you," L shut off the microphone, his hand retreating to his knee. Her wording was interesting. She hadn't said 'It means Kira is still out there', she'd said 'someone still out there _acting_ _as _Kira'.

Now that was quite interesting.

_-ooo-Day Thirty-Five-ooo-_

Though raining again, today was a bit calmer than the previous ones had been. Light was giving his pleas of innocence a rest for the day, though he did throw out a sentence or two here or there. L pretty much just ignored him, having come to the conclusion that Light, like Misa, had somehow lost his memories of ever being Kira.

L also ignored Matsuda sighing heavily behind him. He sometimes wondered how in the world that man had become a detective with the impatience that he had. It didn't serve him well and would get him into trouble one day.

Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Ebony's lips were moving. She was lying on her cot with her fingers woven together over her abdomen, her sugar hair sprawled around her head and shoulders. Her ankles were linked, her toes occasionally moving around.

"Is Ebony talking to herself?" Aizawa asked, having also noticed Ebony's moving lips. In order to find out, L pressed the button for the microphone to her cell, staying silent so she wouldn't know it was on.

It was the music from the park.

L tilted his head slightly as he listened, enjoying the peaceful melody. Now that he had more time to listen, he noticed that the music sounded like a lullaby, gentle and soothing.

"Wow," Matsuda marveled as he came closer to listen, "Ebony-chan's voice is amazing. Is there anything she can't do?" Matsuda threw his hands up, "She can bake, she was obviously some kind of athlete like a gymnast or something at some point, and she can sing!"

L had to agree. Ebony certainly was a multi-talented individual, not to mention multi-faced. She could be short-tempered and headstrong one moment, shy and meek at another, and then caring and empathetic the next.

L wondered what other secrets she had hidden behind the face she'd somehow stolen from an angel.

_-ooo-Day Fifty-ooo-_

"Are you alright, Yagami-san?" L asked the middle aged man still opting confinement over freedom. He heard Matsuda grumbling something about being stuck inside on such a beautiful day, but he ignored him with ease, "There's no need for you to still be there."

"_It's been over a month since Kira started killing again…I'm convinced my son isn't Kira,"_ The man didn't raise his bowed head, _"Now only you need to be convinced, Ryuzaki. I'm not leaving here without my son…"_

L couldn't think up a response to that. It was quite uncomfortable for him to witness such unconditional love for another person. It dredged up things he'd rather forget and made him wonder what it would feel like to be loved like that. He didn't like such thoughts, as they were distracting and completely irrelevant to his work and life.

"Light-kun?" L pressed the button for his speaker, "Are you ok?"

"_Yeah…I'm fine, but…Ryuzaki…the killing has stopped since I've been confined,"_ Light tried his best to reason with the stubborn detective, _"From that, I think that Kira must know what's going on here…Using that kind of reasoning-"_

"No," L cut him off, "The killings have stopped because you are Kira."

Light still continued to claim his innocence, _'If he was Kira,'_ L thought, _'then he should know that the killings have resumed…yet he doesn't seem to know at all.'_

L turned to Misa.

"Amane."

"_Yes?"_ Misa was slumped over, her blonde hair reaching for the floor and the ties holding her ponytails were slipping slightly.

"You don't seem too well," L said, "Are you ok?"

"_Are you an idiot?"_ Misa demanded weakly, _"I've been in here for weeks – how could I be well?"_

"Yes. Good point."

"_Let me go already,"_ Misa pleaded, _"I miss Light."_

"Looks like they're all at their limits," Matsuda commented from the sidelines, "Excluding Ebony-chan, anyway…"

"Ryuzaki, why do you keep Light confined?" Aizawa stepped closer to the dark haired man hunched in his chair, a small dish of jelly in one hand and a silver spoon in the other, "He should be released. Then the Chief will come out too. People are being killed without these two gaining any information about it. That's enough to see that-"

"No," L cut him off, his voice calm as usual as though he wasn't taking anything seriously at all, "The only thing I see is the abnormal strength of Amane's love for Yagami Light."

"Ryuzaki…I'm sorry, but to me it looks you're doing this because you don't want to admit that you were wrong about Light being Kira," Aizawa stated firmly once he'd worked up the nerve to. No matter how frail and harmless L looked, he still managed to be incredibly intimidating.

"I figured you might think that," L said, spooning jelly into his mouth and never taking his eyes from the monitors.

"We know that Kira killed Lind L. Taylor and the FBI agents," Aizawa said, trying to make L see reason, "And as Light once mentioned, if Kira could kill under surveillance and without gaining information, then there would be no need to kill Taylor and the agents. They'd never be any kind of threat to him. Kira doesn't kill without a reason. That was your conclusion as well, Ryuzaki."

"I see…" Matsuda nodded absently, "If he could kill under these circumstances, then he had nothing to fear from the FBI."

"A search of Light's house revealed nothing," Aizawa went on, "All we found was a diary in his desk that showed he was working hard on solving this case. Though the final line in it said 'I might be Kira…' It's been fifty days now. There's no point in this. We need to concentrate on finding the true Kira!"

"…I understand," L said reluctantly as he licked some jelly from his thumb. He then hit the white button for the microphone on the far left of the coffee table, "Yagami-san."

"_What?"_ Soichiro just barely turned to the camera. He wasn't being rude, he was just exhausted.

"I want to speak with you directly. Will you return to the task force headquarters?" L saw his confusion and reluctance even with the slightly fuzzy image, "I will share my conclusion on this case. As Light-kun's father, I want you to be the first to hear it."

Soichiro seemed to roll that around in his head for a moment before conceding, _"Fine."_

_-ooo-Day Fifty-Three-ooo-_

Ebony shifted her feet as she waited in an underground parking garage with Light and Aizawa. It looked like they were the only ones there. Light was wearing a fresh set of clothes that looked like white pajamas and had his hands cuffed behind his back. Aizawa had offered her a similar set of clothes as well, but she had refused, eyeing the clothing as though it represented every evil thing in the world.

Light, on the other hand, was growing rather uncomfortable with how Ebony was just staring at him like he'd sprouted a third arm out of his head. She seemed a little confused and maybe even reluctant to believe something. After about five minutes of the incessant staring that reminded him forcibly of Ryuzaki, she closed her rosy eyes with a heavy sigh and turned to look up at the ceiling with a bored, slightly frustrated expression. Light noticed that she wasn't handcuffed or anything and wondered what had warranted her the special treatment.

Suddenly, all three of them were temporarily blinded by a set of bright headlights. After their eyes adjusted, they opened them to see Yagami Soichiro stepping halfway from the car.

"Light!" Amane Misa cried from the car, overjoyed to be seeing her love for the first time in weeks.

Aizawa led Ebony and Light to the car, having both of them slide into the back, making it so that Ebony was sandwiched between Misa and Light, "You take it from here, Chief," Aizawa said as he shut the door.

"I missed you so much, Light!" Misa leaned over Ebony, caused the girl to shrink back into the seat as far as she could as the blonde smiled brightly at the bronze haired genius.

"Misa," Light greeted her before turning to his father, "What's going on, Dad?"

"Huh?! Dad?!" Ebony suppressed a snicker at the mortified look on the blonde model's face, "Oh no, Light! I called your father a stalker!"

"Are we finally being cleared and released?" Light asked. Ebony decided it would be best to just sit back and listen. Something was up.

"No…right now you three are," Everyone tensed at the dark tone of the man's voice, "being taken to your execution. An underground facility has been set up and your executions will be carried out in secret. I volunteered to take you there."

"Execution?!" Light gasped, his eyes wide with horror, "What are you talking about, Dad?!"

"What?! You're joking, right?! Dad…" Misa laughed nervously, trying to keep from wigging out.

Ebony frowned as she listened to the jabbering going on around her. They were going to be executed? What the hell?! L had promised the government that the killings would stop with their deaths? He would take his own life if he turned out to be wrong? Something wasn't right. L never closed a case without concrete evidence, like Light said, but Ebony's biggest clue was that L never bowed before anyone, not even the strongest governments in the world. His pride would never allow it. Her eyes started traveling around the car, looking for both escape routes and any clues as to what was really going on here.

Soichiro's voice pulled her from her musings, "We're here."

They all looked around. It seemed that Soichiro had taken them to the grassy valley under an overpass, quite a ways out of the city. Light asked where they were and Misa suddenly perked up, thinking Soichiro was going to let them escape. Soichiro admitted to bringing them here deliberately instead of to the execution grounds.

"Light," Soichiro turned, his eyes steel behind his black, half-rimmed glasses, "I'm going to kill you here and then kill myself."

"What are you saying, Dad?!" Light recoiled, "Y…you can't be serious!!"

"Stop it!! You're crazy!!" Misa exclaimed, tears building in her eyes, "Your child is Kira, so you'll kill him and kill yourself?! If you want to die, then die by yourself!! Can't you even see that if you do that you'll be no different from Kira?!"

"No…I'm different then Kira," Soichiro stated harshly, "I have the responsibility of being his father and the police chief."

"Aaah!! You're insane!!" Misa screamed, tears streaming down her face. Ebony's ears were ringing from all the noise and she had to suppress the urge to cover them.

"Dad! Misa's right! If we die here, we'll never uncover the truth!" Light exclaimed, "We should run away! The truth might come out. No, I'll find the truth while running!"

"It's too late, Light," Soichiro said as he reached into his suit jacket, "It's already been decided by those above me. You're dying either way. This way at least it'll be by my hand…"

Ebony's eyes zeroed in on the gun Soichiro pulled from his jacket, every muscle in her body tensing to jump the man should she need to. She didn't like guns. She _really_ didn't like guns.

"Stop Dad! I swear I'm not Kira!" Light recoiled even more from the sight of the metal object in his father's hand, "If we die here, we'll fall right into Kira's trap! Don't you see that?!"

"Amane…Ebony," Soichiro looked at the two very different girls, "Light and I will die here, but I have no reason to kill you. The police will find this car soon. You'll both be executed at the planned sight."

"Soichiro-san," Ebony decided to try her hand, her voice unnaturally soft and calm given the situation, "If any of us were Kira, don't you think we'd have killed you by now?"

"Shut up," Soichiro cocked the gun and placed it before his son's forehead.

Ebony blinked. The click…there was something wrong…If he was planning to kill them, why would the gun be…?

'_Oh!'_

There was a scream.

A bang.

…Dead silence…

Light and Misa stared at the gun in shock while Ebony twisted on of her curls around her finger, looking at the gun calmly.

"…A blank…?" Light gasped.

"Thank God," Soichiro slumped back into his seat, completely drained.

"Thank God…? What do you mean, Dad?"

"Forgive me, you three," Soichiro rested his head against the steering wheel, trying to calm himself, "This was the only way to end your confinement. Please understand that I only did it because I truly believed that you weren't Kira."

Ebony grinned suddenly, sticking her hand forward and waving at the rear-view mirror hanging from the ceiling just beyond the windshield. The action made her look like an idiot before she spoke, "Hi, Ryuzaki!

"_Hello, Ebony-chan,"_ L's voice came through the tiny microphone installed alongside a just as tiny camera, _"Brilliant acting, Yagami-san. In that situation, if Amane was the second Kira, who can kill with just a person's face, I think we can assume she would have killed you before you shot Light-kun._

"_And the same is true if Light-kun was Kira,"_ L went on, _"The Kira I know would kill his own father if need be. It is possible Light-kun may have figured out it was an act before the end, but as promised, I will end everyone's confinement."_

"And also as promised," L continued as he watched everyone through the camera, "though Amane says they were tapes to send into an occult TV show, we do have various pieces of evidence connecting her to the second Kira. Until everything is made clear, we will put Amane under surveillance."

"_What?!"_ L was amused by the indignant tone in her voice and face, _"You still suspect me?!"_

"_Well, you get to return to your normal life,"_ Soichiro turned around to address the upset blonde, hoping to get her to shut up, _"If you're not guilty then can just think of the surveillance as police protection."_

"_Oh yeah!"_ Misa perked up at this, _"Since I'm not the second Kira, I'll just pretend I got some bodyguards."_

'_Thank you, whoever the hell is up there!'_ Ebony thought and sighed gratefully.

"And Light-kun, as also promised," L saw Light turn back to the camera, "I will work it out so that you and I will be together twenty-four hours a day, working on solving this case."

"_You got it, Ryuzaki,"_ L saw Ebony give Light an odd look, like his words were contradicting something in her head, _"Let's catch Kira together!"_

"Yes. I'm pleased to be working with you."

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Author's Note: Ok. Chapter 20. I hope you all enjoyed it.

**IvoryCrayon:** I hadn't thought of it like that but, yeah! That does make the dirty part of the brain giggle a little. I might use that later!

**Marisol Akyri:** L did have reason to suspect Ebony even though he tried to avoid thinking of it. It was intentional to make her confinement a surprise and I'm glad that it seemed to work. Yay!

Please review for me!

-HaleyJo


	21. Chained

Author's Note: This scene was fun to read in the manga and I had a blast adding Ebony to the mix. Slightly disturbing as the chain idea may be, it is hilarious! Please enjoy!

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**21. CHAINED**

She was going to die. No way around it. Her ribs were going to crack and puncture her lungs thus rendering them useless as they collapsed and filled with blood, keeping her from breathing at all.

"Is this really necessary, Ryuzaki...?"

"I'm not doing this because I want to."

"Huh…? This is what you meant by being together twenty-four hours a day?"

Ebony had both hands clamped over her mouth as she watched the hilarious scene before her. Light and L were connected by a set of handcuffs with a very long chain, one clamped around Light's left wrist and the other around L's right. Another of her ribs went when Misa insinuated that L was gay and into bondage. No one else could see it, but Ebony could see that he didn't really appreciate the comment in the least bit.

"But Light belongs to me," Misa continued to protest the whole arrangement, "And if you're always together, then when am I supposed to go on dates with Light?"

"The dates will naturally be with the three of us."

"Wha?!" Misa puffed up indignantly, "You're saying we have to kiss on front of you?!"

"I didn't say you have to do anything," L replied, "But I will be watching."

"Huh?! What the hell?! I knew it! You _are_ a pervert!" Misa exclaimed.

'_Oh, Ryuzaki,'_ Ebony shook her head,_ 'You are so clueless as to how that sounded.'_

"Light-kun, please shut Misa-san up," L faced the teenager, his voice almost a whine.

Ebony grabbed the pillow she was sharing an armchair with and curled herself around it, trying to muffle the snorts that were taking the place of vocalized laughter.

"Misa, don't be difficult," Light said, trying to be nice while also getting her to calm down, "You were definitely the one who sent those videos. Be grateful that you're allowed this much freedom."

"Hey, what are you saying, Light?" Misa turned from L to Light, ignoring the other man completely, "I'm your girlfriend, right? Don't you trust your lover?"

'_Wait,'_ Ebony's mirth halted for a moment as she lifted her face to the ceiling, her features confused, _'Don't people have to be having sex to be considered lovers?'_

"Girlfriend…?" Light frowned, "All I know is that you say you fell in love with me at first sight and now you won't leave me alone…"

"Then you took advantage of that and kissed me?!" Misa exclaimed, pounding her fists against his chest. Ebony grinned like an idiot and had to bury her face in her pillow again.

"About this love at first sight…" L cut in, "It was in Aoyama on May 22nd, correct?"

"Yes."

L looked up at the ceiling for a moment before looking at Misa again, "Why did you go to Aoyama that day? What were you wearing?"

"How many times do I have to tell you? I just went there because I felt like it," Misa placed her hands on her hips. It was kind of funny seeing someone like her trying to look intimidating, "How should I be able to remember exactly what clothes I was wearing? I'm not allowed to hang out in Aoyama without a reason?"

"So you went to Aoyama," L began laying out the facts for her, "and when you got home you were in love with Light-kun and knew his name?"

"Yes," Misa stated, not seeing how impossible that was.

"But you don't know how you learned his name?" L saw Ebony roll her eyes when Misa gave another affirmative, "Then…how would you feel if Light-kun was Kira?"

"Huh? If Light was Kira," Misa grabbed Light's arm and grinned, "Awesome. I've always been grateful to Kira for punishing the man who killed my parents," Misa said as she snuggled against an uncomfortable Light, "If Light was Kira, then I'd like him even more."

Ebony started mocking Misa as she spoke, swinging her feet back and forth over the arm of the chair she was situated in. L found this highly amusing, but kept a straight face as he continued subtly interrogating Misa and explaining the situation they were all now in, even telling her that Matsuda, addressed as Matsui, would be acting as her manager and she couldn't tell anyone that he was a cop. It seemed that Misa didn't want Matsuda as he manager, though.

A sudden slam made everyone jump violently. Aizawa had run out of patience.

"GIVE IT A FREAKIN' REST WITH ALL THIS DATING AND KISSING AND MISA-MISA TALK!! THIS IS THE _KIRA CASE_, DAMN IT! TAKE IT SERIOUSLY!"

L glanced over at Ebony while Aizawa tried to take Misa to her room. Ebony was curled up by the feet of the chair she'd been sitting in with her hands over her ears and her eyes shut tight, her lips pressed into a tight line.

"You may want to refrain from outbursts such as that again, Aihara-san," L said once the taller man had finally gotten Misa into her room, "It seems to have greatly upset Ebony-chan."

"Oh," Aizawa saw the girl curled up by her chair, "I'm sorry."

Ebony then peeked her eyes open and slowly lifted her hands from her ears, seeming relieved to find everything was quiet. She then climbed back up into the chair and went back to her own world, tossing the pillow up in the air to catch it whenever it came back down.

"Light-san?" Ebony looked over at him, "Are you sure about Amane-san? You're not leading her on, are you? That would be mean."

"I'm not trying to lead her on," Light shook his head with a sigh, "It's all one-sided, but she won't leave me alone."

"Then could you act like you're serious about her?" L suddenly asked, "We know she's involved with the second Kira from the video tape evidence, and also that she loves you."

Ebony scoffed at that. Love, ha! The girl was obsessed, not in love.

"You want me to get close to her and make her reveal things about the second Kira?" Light asked.

"Yes, I think you are capable of doing it, Light-kun," L replied. Ebony hoped this was just another of his tests, "This is one of the reasons that I released you all."

"…Ryuzaki…" Light's tone firmed, "Even if it's to solve the Kira case, I could never play with a woman's emotions like that."

"I'll have to agree with Light-san on this one, Ryuzaki," Ebony shifted in her seat, "Taking advantage of a person's emotions is a cruel thing and can cause some pretty serious, long-lasting damage. Since we're all working with this case, we'd all be a part of it, and personally, that's not something I want on my conscience."

'_Something's odd here…'_ L looked at Light as thoroughly as he could, but he could find no traces of falsehood in his words or face, _'It's like his personality has changed…Could this really be an act? Should I assume that not only was Amane controlled by Kira, but Light-kun was too?'_

"What's wrong, Ryuzaki?" Light asked, puzzled by the man's pause.

"Nothing. You're right, Light-kun," L spoke as he started walking, "But I'd appreciate it if you could remind her to make sure she doesn't reveal things about the investigation to anyone."

"Hey Ryuzaki, is there anything that can be done about this constant need to change hotels?" Light asked. The others seemed glad that someone had finally brought up this subject, "I think it would be better if we could stay in one location."

"Yes, I've already thought of that," L replied, hearing Light stumble slightly as his walking pulled on the chain linking the two together, "And so…"

"Hey!" Ebony cried as L settled down in the armchair beside her. The space was too small for them to avoid any contact, "I was here first! Move it!"

"No," L said simply as he started hitting keys on his laptop. Ebony rested her elbow on the chair's arm and her chin in her upturned palm, grumbling something about stubborn insomniacs, "And so," L continued, "construction started when I first met face to face with Yagami-san and the others. It should be completed in a few days. Take a look."

On the screen of the laptop, an image of a huge, blue-tinted building came up, its reflective windows glaring white under the sun.

"Woah!" Ebony leaned in closer to the screen, "This is too cool! What's all there?"

"There are twenty-three floors above ground, two floors below," L answered, enjoying the impressed, interested expression on her face, "You can't see them from outside, but the roof is equipped with two helicopters. The outside looks like an ordinary high-rise building, but to enter you need to go through various security check points. All the equipment and computers inside are state of the art."

Ebony nodded absently. The tight security made sense considering their actual goal.

"The 5th to 20th floor all have four private rooms per floor, so I'd like you all to live there as much as possible," L said, addressing everyone, "And if we increase our numbers, we could accommodate about sixty people. Misa-san will get her own floor," He added almost as an afterthought, "That should keep her happy."

"Oh? Yeah," Light agreed, seeing the logic in that. Misa was a little…high maintenance, "But wow. To go this far…"

"Actually," Matsuda spoke up for the first time since defending himself from Misa, "Where are you getting the money for this, Ryuzaki?"

"So as you can see, I want to solve this case no matter what," L said, "That's what this means."

Ebony snorted at how L had deliberately danced around Matsuda's question. L poked her harshly in the head in retaliation, which led to him getting kicked in the side, gentle enough so as not to hurt him, but with enough force to cause a puff of air to escape his lips.

"Yeah, I'm with you," Light declared both to confirm his cooperation and to keep L and Ebony from getting into a fight over nothing, "The mass-killings are bad enough, but I'll never forgive Kira for the trouble he's brought to my dad and me. I want to catch him no matter what, too."

"If you really mean 'No matter what,' how about getting closer to Misa-san and making them reveal things…?" L took another shot at it, abandoning his squabble with Ebony for the time being.

"I can't do that," Light replied while crossing his arms over his chest, "It goes against my code."

"I see…" L's face contorted into a slight pout, "That's unfortunate."

Aizawa made an odd sound, causing Soichiro to look at him quizzically.

"Sorry…I'm really motivated now, too," He explained, "Ryuzaki, Chief, Light, let's catch Kira no matter what?"

"Yes," Soichiro nodded.

"Umm…you didn't include me…" Matsuda said awkwardly.

"Don't worry about it, Matsui-san," Ebony got to her knees and placed her hands on the back of the chair, facing backward to smile at him, "He didn't include me either."

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Author's Note: I have 87 reviews! I'm so happy! I'd hoped my story would be popular and I'm glad I was proven right. This is just too cool!

**Lady of Dreams and Nightmares:** No, Ebony was never in an orphanage. Remember Ozu Mine who was the librarian? She said Ebony went to the library all the time when she was still little. That's how she learned.

**Hao'sAnjul:** Don't really get your meaning. What is she going to do now that Light is free? I don't precisely understand the question.

**Marisol Akyri:** All in good time, my friend. Patience is an annoying virtue.

**sun-sun kat:** Albinos have red/pink eyes because there is no pigment in their irises, so you are basically seeing the veins in their eyes. Some albinos have really pale blue eyes since they do have some pigment, but I liked the pink eyes better.

Thank you, everyone. Please review!

-HaleyJo

(P.S. Anyone who likes L romance fics needs to read the stories written by Mel1983. Her stories are awesome! More than that! You must read them! They inspired me to post my LxOC story.)


	22. Date Fight

Author's Note: Just the name of this chapter should get you all giggling. I can't help but grin and giggle every time I see it. Please enjoy!

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**22. DATE FIGHT**

"Do you ever stop baking cakes?"

Ebony grinned and looked over to the door to the kitchen to see the tall form of Watari standing there, his grandfatherly smile in place as always beneath his moustache. He was in his impeccable suit as always, ready for any time that he might be needed for anything.

"Not really," Ebony shrugged, "I have been living with L, after all. I'll stop baking when he stops eating sweets."

Watari chuckled at her words, knowing L would never stop eating sweets.

"Besides," Ebony sighed, a bit of a sad expression overtaking her features though she continued to smile, "The confinement cost me my scholarship and my job. What else would I be doing now?"

"We both apologize for that," Watari said, his voice tinged with regret, "We never anticipated changing your life in such ways."

"Don't worry about it, Watari," Ebony waved off his words and she opened a package of blood red strawberries, removing leaves when needed and beginning to decorate the cake she had just finished frosting, "I don't regret anything so far. If I had the chance to change anything, I wouldn't. I've enjoyed knowing both you and L."

Watari smiled. There weren't many people in her financially challenged position that would give up their only real chance of a better life just to keep up friendships with two people.

"Still working on cracking L, though," Ebony pouted up at the ceiling as she licked frosting off her fingers, "That guy is the weirdest human being on the face of the planet, I swear!"

"He thinks the same about you," Watari replied, seeing Ebony's surprised look, "He doesn't understand you at all, and it frustrates him."

"Ha! I'll bet," Ebony laughed as she started tidying up the kitchen and hanging up the off-white apron she'd been wearing over her black dress, "He hates not knowing things! Anyway," Ebony changed the subject, "I'm going to bring this cake up to them. I'm sure things aren't going quite as anyone had in mind."

"Probably not," Watari agreed, "Try to keep them in order, would you?"

"Sure thing," Ebony picked up the cake and exited the kitchen, raising her leg to use her foot to press the 'Up' button on the elevator. Once inside, she used her toe again to reluctantly hit the button for Amane Misa's floor.

The young model was adamant on having a date with Light even though L would have to be there too. Ebony didn't really understand the logic in that, but she supposed she wouldn't since she'd never been on a date before. She'd heard of group dates on TV and in books, so she assumed that was kind of what this was even though L was more like the third wheel.

Heaving a sigh when the elevator released her, Ebony walked up to the door and knocked several times.

"Hello?" She called, "Can you hear me or are you all too busy fighting?"

The door opened to reveal Amane Misa, her expression curious and annoyed.

"Who are you?" She demanded.

"My name's Ebony," She replied, "I was with you and Light-san in the car when Yagami-san pretended he was going to commit murder-suicide."

"Oh yeah! I remember you," Misa's blue eyes brightened in recognition, "You live here too?"

"More or less," Ebony shrugged, "May I come in?"

"Sure," Misa moved aside so she could enter, "We could use another girl in here."

"That's part of the reason I came," Ebony replied as she waved at L and Light, "Figured I'd even out the amounts of estrogen and testosterone in the room. Also," Ebony held up her hands, "I brought cake."

Misa sighed as she plopped back down on the couch, crossing her legs and propping her head up against her wrist while Ebony handed out cake before sitting Indian-style next to her. Things were awkwardly silent for quite some time before Misa spoke up again, "Umm…this doesn't feel like a date at all."

"Pay no attention to me," L stated as he shoved the strawberry from his finished cake into his mouth. He knew she was referring to him in particular if her sideways glare at him meant anything, "By the way," He said around his fork, "Will you be eating that cake?"

"Sweets are fattening," Misa stated, turning her nose up at the slice of cake sitting on a small dish before her, "No thanks."

"If you use your head, you can eat sweets without gaining weight though…" L responded while Ebony smirked.

"Ah! You're making fun of me again," Misa accused before grinning, "Fine, I'll give you the cake. So, can Light and I be alone?"

"Even if you're alone, I'll be watching on the monitors, so it won't make any difference," L stated as he stood on the couch and reached over to grab Misa's cake.

"Why are you such a pervert?!" Misa shrieked. Ebony frowned slightly, wondering why she kept calling him that. He wasn't being perverted, just overly cautious, "Stop these sick hobbies of yours!"

"You may call me whatever you wish, but I'm taking your cake," Ebony snickered at his response. He always said the funniest things even though he didn't mean to be funny.

"Fine then, when Light and I are alone, I'll close the curtains and turn off the lights," Misa said with a weird grin on her face. Ebony put more cake in her mouth to avoid the temptation to make a comment that could possibly come off as rude.

"There are infrared cameras too," L said, growing tired with Misa's nagging.

"Then we'll get under the covers, right, Light?" Misa said with a suggestive smile in the other boy's direction.

"Are you ok, Ryuzaki?" Ebony asked, trying to change the subject before things got out of hand, "You seem upset."

"She's right," Light joined in as well both to change the subject and because L's vapidity had been bugging him too. Misa's disgruntled whine was ignored, "We have this great facility now, yet you don't seem very into it."

"Into it…? Not really," L said as he speared more cake, "I'm actually kind of depressed."

"Depressed?"

"Yes," L said as he ate more cake, proceeding to speak with his mouth still full. That was one of his habits Ebony admittedly had bugged him about, but not too much. At least you usually couldn't see his food when he spoke unlike other people when they talked with their mouths full, "For the longest time, I thought you were Kira. I'm a little shocked that I was wrong."

'_You're not wrong, L,'_ Ebony looked up at the ceiling, her mind's voice holding a bit of a sing-song tone, _'Light-san is Kira, so is Amane-san. Just not right now.'_

"Well, I still suspect you, thus the handcuffs," L corrected himself as he jingled the chain with his wrist, "But Kira could control people's actions, meaning Kira controlled you to make me think that you were Kira."

As L set down his fork and rested the side of his face against his hand on his knee, Ebony noticed how worn he looked. She suddenly felt quite guilty for not noticing before now and trying to help comfort him. She'd been distracted by Light's suddenly constant company which, if she were being honest with herself, she was quite jealous of. She missed it when it had just been her and L.

"Light-kun and Misa-san were both controlled by Kira. Everything fits in my mind if I assume that to be fact," L said, "The only thing I don't understand is why the two of you weren't killed. If you were being controlled and killed people without being conscious of it, then you are nothing more than a victim," L decided to look at Ebony while he spoke. He hadn't been able to look at her directly much since her confinement, so he took this opportunity to do so, "I have to start the investigation over from scratch…We're back to the beginning. If Kira took interest in Light-kun because he had access to police information and then controlled him to make you a suspect in my eyes…that's a pretty big shock to me…very frustrating."

"Ryuzaki…" Light crossed his arms as he thought, "With that line of thinking, it means that while we were being controlled, Misa and I were Kiras…"

"Yes, I don't think there's any mistake there," L moved his dark eyes from Ebony to the other two in the room, "You're both Kiras."

"Do you think it moves?"

Everyone turned to look at Ebony, surprised that she'd suddenly spoken up after being silent for so long.

"What moves?" Light asked.

"Kira's killing power," Ebony elaborated as she stuck her thumb in her mouth to clean it of frosting, "Do you think it moves? Killings stopped when Light-san was confined and then started up again two weeks later. Maybe Kira finally realized you were stuck and the power moved."

"That is a conclusion I came to as well," L stated, "The second Kira's last video even mentioned that the power could be shared…"

"That's an interesting theory," Light rested his elbows on his knees, "But if that is the case, then catching Kira will be difficult."

"Yes…that's why I'm depressed," L sighed, "You control someone and use them to kill the criminals, then when that person is caught, you transfer the power to someone else, and the first person loses all their memories…this would make capture impossible."

"I doubt it's as simple as that," Ebony scoffed, "There are clearly limits to this ability. I bet it's more complex than just saying 'Oops, my current puppet was captured! Better move!'"

"She's right," Light smiled and placed a hand on L's shoulder. He was way nicer now that he wasn't Kira anymore, "So come on, show some energy."

"Energy…? I'm just not feeling it…Why even bother?" L asked as he tugged on his lower lip, "Trying hard to go after him just puts us in danger…Don't you agree?"

Ebony saw Light standing up and knew that look in his eye. She quickly grabbed the remainder of the cake and settled it in her lap, lowering her feet to the floor so her thighs would be a steadier base.

"I've thought I was going to die so many times already," L sighed as he reached for his tea.

"Ryuzaki…" L turned to Light curiously.

_**SMACK!!**_

Misa gasped as Light slammed his fist into L's left cheekbone, sending him flying across the room as the glass table between the couches was upturned, sending all the dishes and silverware and cake crumbs to the floor. L landed by the wall, upturning a potted plant and knocking a painting off the wall. Light was forced to follow due to the chain and Misa quickly ducked behind the couch. Ebony tried to find a safe place to put the cake so she could help.

"Ouch," Was all L said as he sat up, a bit impressed with Light's strength. There was no technique or finesse behind his blow, but he had potential.

"Don't be ridiculous!" Light said as he regained his balance, "Just because I'm not the true Kira, just because you were wrong, you want to give up?! You gonna sulk like a baby?!"

"I may have worded it poorly but…" L rubbed his throbbing cheek with the back of his wrist, "I'm saying that continuing this isn't going to get us anywhere good, so maybe we should stop…"

"What are you talking about?" Light demanded, "Unless we chase him, there's no way we'll catch Kira! Who's the one who swore to send Kira to his execution?!" Light strode forward and lifted L by the collar of his white cotton shirt, "The police, the FBI agents, TV announcers, how many innocent people do you think have been victimized?! You're the one who put me, Misa, and Ebony into confinement!!"

Ok, so he had a point, but that didn't mean he had to hit him! Ebony finally found a place to set the cake and got set to pull Light away, readying herself to stop the fight before it went too far.

"I understand that…but whatever the reason…"

L suddenly dropped down out of Light's grasp and drove his heel into Light's chin.

"Once is once!"

The blow sent Light flying much like L had before. Ebony was quick enough to dodge Light but the same couldn't be said when L came along afterward due to that damned chain. All three of them crashed onto the couch and caused it to fall over backward, knocking over the chair behind it.

"Ow…" Ebony frowned as L tried to detangle himself from her while still keeping a wary eye on Light. She looked up to see Light who looked upside down from her viewpoint at the moment, "Are you two quite finished?"

"Sorry, Ebony-chan," L said as he tried to get away from her, a little flustered by the proximity coupled with the fact that she was beneath him. They always seemed to be getting stuck in situations that forced them much closer than either usually got to people. He looked up to Light once he'd gotten some distance from Ebony and made sure she was ok, "It's not just that my reasoning was wrong," He attempted to explain, "It's the fact that the case can't be solved as 'Yagami Light is Kira and Amane Misa is the second Kira.' So I'm a little disappointed. I'm human – that's not allowed?"

"No, it's not," Light said as he got to his feet. Ebony tried to protest his statement, but he ignored her, "The way you talk, it's like you won't be satisfied unless I'm Kira."

"Not satisfied unless you're Kira…?" L mused as he moved from his crouched position that made him look much like a dangerous predator and got to his feet as well, "Yes, that may be true…I have just realized something…I wanted you to be Kira."

With that said, Light punched L square in the face. Could this really be an act if his saying he wants to give up makes Light hit him with all he has? Could he really be innocent? No, L's instincts told him this man was Kira, and his instincts were never wrong. He still could have passed his powers to someone else to move suspicion away from himself.

"Once is once," L stated as he took a deep breath, "I'll have you know that I'm quite strong."

L again kicked Light in the jaw. Misa was wisely cowering behind a nearby corner while Ebony jumped right into the fray, trying to get them to stop. The chain proved to be an annoyance as each of them were jerked around in all directions, Ebony almost tripped by the chain more than once.

"Damn it! Will you both just-"

Ebony's demand was cut off when the phone suddenly rang, causing them all to freeze where they were. Light and L had each other by the collar of their shirts and their other hand pulled back, ready to punch. Ebony was trying to hold L back with one hand against his bicep and the other attempting to untangle Light's fingers from his shirt. No one moved for a moment, wary of inciting more violence, when L finally moved to answer the phone, holding it in his weird way.

"Yes?"

Ebony and Light could both hear the sound of Matsuda's excited voice, but neither could hear exactly what he was prattling on about.

"What happened?!" L asked, "…Yes…I see…"

His face slackened slightly and he soon tossed the phone back on its hook, hanging up on him.

"What was it?" Light asked.

"Nothing, just Matsuda being an idiot again," L responded.

"Well, Matsuda is a little slow…"

"Both of you be nice," Ebony sighed, glad that they at least weren't going right back to fighting. She swiped her tongue over her lower lip, grimacing at the coppery taste of blood. She couldn't recall who'd hit her or whether she'd been hit with a foot or a fist, but it didn't really matter.

"You're injured," L came to her and placed the fingertips of one hand against her jaw, lifting her head so he could inspect the damage.

"Less than you two," Ebony replied, "I've had worse, believe me, so don't have a conniption fit over it. If you two weren't acting like such children, I wouldn't have had to try to stop you in the first place. Now," She placed her hands on her hips, "Are you two going to get along, or do I have to change in that chain for a metal bar so you can't get anywhere near each other?"

"The chain will suffice," L said, his hands retreating to his pockets. He wouldn't put it past her to figure out some way to carry through with her threat.

"Good," Ebony turned and started trying to clean up the mess, righting the couch and putting the painting back up on the wall. She looked over at Misa who was still hiding, "Sorry about all this, Amane-san, but they're done being idiots. You can come out now."

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Author's Note: I loved this part in the manga. I just can't get enough of it. The whole thing is one huge psychological war and none of the characters exhibit even the slightest hint of violence, and then they're suddenly beating the crap out of each other! When I first saw this scene my jaw dropped and I couldn't stop laughing! It's just that hilarious!

**Mel1983:** I liked how L and Ebony poke at each other as well. Both are childish enough to do so and it seems far more fitting for their relationship. And thanks a lot for using my name for the trashy girl in your story(heavy sarcasm)...I'm just kidding! I thought it was funny as hell!

**Lady of Dreams and Nightmares:** I don't know about a Mine from FB, whatever that stands for, but you put in a smiley face, so I'm assuming that's a good thing. Oh, and Ebony is just that flexible, she didn't really practice it. That's just how she is.

Please review!

-HaleyJo


	23. Entertaining

Author's Note: I guess this is another filler chapter, but I find it hilarious!

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**23. ENTERTAINING**

Ebony yawned widely as she dipped an apple slice into the small sugar dish she'd gotten from the kitchen, one white foot against the counter as she leaned back in her chair. As though to add insult to injury, she felt horrible today. It was just one of those weird days where her energy was low and she usually got irritating headaches. As if it wasn't already enough that the Kira case was going nowhere and L was still pouting over possibly being wrong about Light. Everything had been painfully slow since L and Light's fight in Misa's room. L was taking no interest in the case at all while Light was working diligently at the computers. Everyone else was trying their hardest too, but nothing much was coming of it.

She supposed that the only good thing that had been going on was that Misa was gone much of the time due to her role in that new romance movie…ah, she could never remember its name. Ebony had nothing against the other girl, really. She was actually quite entertaining since she wasn't necessarily stupid, she just tended to act on impulse, especially when she was excited about something, which was quite often.

Misa was here today, though, and Ebony had already spent a good part of the day with the blonde girl since Misa complained about having no one to talk to since Light was chained to L all the time. Ebony was more or less her talking Barbie doll, and while Ebony grumbled about it frequently, she enjoyed dressing up in different outfits with Misa.

The only problem was those damn cameras.

To counteract them, Ebony insisted the lights be off whenever they were changing clothes. Misa had reminded her of the infrared feature of the cameras, but Ebony had just shrugged and said that all they'd be able to see was their silhouettes moving around, so it would be fine. Misa was glad that Ebony had thought that up since, even though she was pretty accustomed to changing in front of other people since she was a model, the fact that pretty much all the other people in the building were older men made her uncomfortable.

Plus, she still thought Ryuzaki was a pervert.

"Ebony-chan!" Misa suddenly bounded down the stairs. The sudden sound in what had been almost near silence except for Matsuda's occasional sigh and keys clicking under Light's fingers made Ebony jump so badly that she toppled out of her seat onto the cold, hard floor.

"Ow," Ebony rubbed the back of her head where it had hit the wheel of her chair. She wasn't hurt that bad, but the fall combined with her headache and lack of any form of energy just worsened her mood.

"Are you ok, Ebony-chan?!" Misa scurried over worriedly, "Misa is so sorry!"

"Don't worry about it," Ebony waved away her words as she got up off the floor and climbed back into her chair. At least she hadn't spilled her sugar or apple slices, "I've felt like crap all day."

"Why?" L was the one who asked this time, looking at her from over his knees, "Are you getting sick again?"

"Nah. Perfect health."

L considered that for a moment with a brief glance at the ceiling.

"Are you menstruating then?"

"R…Ryuzaki-san!" Misa was mortified that L had asked something like that, and she wasn't the only one. Everyone else was gaping at the man, not knowing whether to laugh at him or reprimand him, "You don't ask a girl those kinds of things!"

Ebony giggled slightly, finding the whole situation funny, especially with L's perfectly straight face like he didn't see anything wrong with his question. Knowing him, he probably didn't. L wasn't exactly what anyone would call particularly tactful when it came to appeasing his curiosity concerning other people. A genius in everything but proper social etiquette.

"No, I'm not," Ebony shook her head, a small grin on her face since she still found L's question rather funny, "As far as I know, I don't have a monthly cycle."

"You mean that your body has never prepared itself to bare children?" L asked, his mind going through all the different possibilities for a seventeen year old female to have yet to start her cycle.

"That's about right," Ebony answered. Everyone was staring at her now both due to this information and because of how calmly she was discussing a bodily dysfunction, especially a dysfunction that played such a big part in her life.

"Still Ryuzaki-san, you shouldn't ask a girl those kinds of things," Misa placed her hands on her hips as she stared down the young detective, "They're private."

"Why?" L asked, tilting his head to the side slightly, "Almost every human female goes through the process of preparing their womb to conceive a child and then shedding the unused ovum, uterine lining, and blood every month once their hormones begin to flow."

Ebony snorted in her seat, her tongue between her teeth as she fought not to laugh too much. L was just so darn cute when he was making social blunders like this! Misa went on trying to explain to him exactly why a man didn't inquire as to a woman's time of the month but he just didn't get why it was an inappropriate topic when it happened to all women over their lifetimes. Ebony had to admit that she agreed with him on that logic. She'd never really had a problem with anyone asking her if it was her time of the month, but maybe that was because she didn't have one? No, one would think that would make her more self-conscious. She probably wouldn't care even if she had started her period like a normal person.

To be completely honest, she was kind of glad that she didn't have a menstrual cycle. All the cramping and bleeding and mood swings and stuff she'd heard and read of sounded like Hell.

Oh well. At least the subject had been entertaining.

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Author's Note: The idea of L asking something like that popped into my head several months ago and I couldn't resist putting it in here. The chapter doesn't really go anywhere, but it was too perfect not to post! Anywho, please review!

-HaleyJo


	24. Movie Shoot

Author's Note: Another chapter! Woo-hoo!

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**24. MOVIE SHOOT**

Ebony sighed heavily as she rested her cheek against her palm staring blankly at the computer screens. She tugged at the sleeve of the white shirt she was wearing, moving it down so her hands were free. It was one of L's that Watari had let her borrow since she'd let her laundry go too long and therefore had no clean clothes to wear. It had garnered her a few odd looks, but she had explained when Misa had had the boldness to ask, and she had decided to ignore what everyone had been thinking. It wouldn't have been possible anyway. Seriously! L and Light were chained together, so it would have been impossible, not to mention they were only friends. Her bare feet rubbed against the wheel of the chair she was sitting in as she shook away the thought, another sigh working past her lips.

"Ebony-chan!"

Said girl jumped slightly as Misa bounded over to her, bubbling with excitement.

"What is it?" She asked.

"You sit here all the time doing nothing," Misa stated in that no-nonsense voice that Ebony knew did not bode well for her, "How come you never go out?"

"I…guess I just don't," Ebony blinked. The idea of going out anywhere never really occurred to her. She didn't avoid it, she just never thought of it.

"Well, today you are," Misa grabbed her up and started dragging her toward the floating staircase, "Me and Matsui are going to the movie shoot today, and you're coming with us!"

"What?!" Ebony dug her heels into the floor and halted their movement, "I-I don't want to go to a movie shoot! Ryuzaki, tell her to leave me alone!"

"Actually, it is probably a good idea, Ebony-chan," L answered, ignoring the feeling of her eyes boring holes into his skull, "You don't go out enough."

"This coming from the reclusive detective L," Ebony snorted.

"You are still a young woman," L replied smoothly, "You still have a chance to build a social life, and I am a recluse due to the fact that there are people in every country who would like for me to suffer a premature death."

"You should know that I hate you right now," L glanced over to see Ebony glaring at him, "Just in case you didn't already know that."

"I had a feeling," L replied, "But I don't worry. You seem to be emotionally incapable of holding a grudge against anyone, so you will most likely cease to hate me within the next hour or so."

"Arrogant bastard," Ebony grumbled, knowing he was right like he always was. It probably wouldn't be even an hour before she was smiling at him again.

"See? Even Ryuzaki-san says you should go!" Misa grinned.

"B-but-" Ebony stammered as Misa proceeded to drag her the rest of the way across the room and up the stairs.

"You realize that you've just thrown Ebony into the lion's den, right?" Light asked as he looked over at the eccentric detective.

"Mm, yes. I suppose I have," L grinned as he spun in his chair, "But I was bored, and Ebony-chan should go out to have fun."

Light shook his head at the detective's childish behavior and wondered what all would happen for the rest of the day.

Meanwhile upstairs, after about two hours of fussing and giggling and tugging and grinning, Misa shoved Ebony in front of one of her many full-length mirrors so she could see the results of all the blonde's hard work. But Ebony's attitude didn't change one bit.

"I feel stupid."

"Oh, come on, Ebony-chan!" Misa whined, "This is the kind of style you like, you just are too afraid to wear it. I know so since I've seen you admire the dresses I used to wear."

"Yeah, but…they look weird on me."

"They do not! Misa thinks Ebony-chan looks very nice. You already did, but now you look even better. Your personality doesn't really match, but you look very sexy now. Trust me, I know!"

Ebony whimpered slightly as the overexcited blonde pulled her from her floor, intent on dragging her to her shoot. She knew that she could easily break the girl's hold and lock herself on her floor should she want to, but she did suppose going out could be a good thing. She was getting a little cabin fever.

"We're leaving now!" Misa announced as they bounced down the stairs, Ebony almost tripping down the last few.

"Ok-wow!" Matsuda gaped as they came down, "Wow, Ebony-chan! Y-you look really pretty!"

"Thank you, Matsui-san," Ebony shuffled her bare feet embarrassingly.

"Stop clowning around, Matsuda," Aizawa said sharply.

"S-sorry. But she does look nice."

"See, Light?" Misa shoved Ebony forward some and peeked out from behind her, "Misa-Misa did a good job on making Ebony-chan all pretty for her first day out in weeks, didn't I?"

Ebony wanted to die as she stared at her bare feet. She had to admit that she did like the dress Misa had forced her into. The skirt of the dress was unevenly layered, each hem with lacy trim that made the ends look slightly ragged or like cobweb. The longest part of the skirt in the front and back ended at her fingertips while the sides were slightly shorter, maybe about to the beginnings of her fingers. The body of the dress laced up the front with ribbon and was snug around her bust and abdomen, shifting to the looser, slightly flared skirt material once it reached her hips. The sleeves were long and snug, the cuffs trimmed with lace like the skirt and covering her small hands to her knuckles. The shoulders were slightly stiff like a business suit, the neck was high and, again, trimmed with lace. The neck was attached to the sleeves' shoulders, thus leaving her white skin exposed from the collar bones to just where her chest swelled and her back bare to just under her shoulder blades, though her hair hid that portion of her skin. The neckline, back, and top and bottom of the collar were trimmed with more ragged lace. Of course her holster was chained about her hips, her necklace was about her throat, and the dress, of course, was black.

But just because she liked the dress didn't mean that she was comfortable wearing it.

"What do you think, Ryuzaki-san?" Misa asked, much to Ebony's acute discomfort.

"Ebony-chan looks nice," L stated after sparing her a brief glance. Staring at her from across the room was ok. It was another thing entirely to ogle when the subject was close-up, "You should all have fun."

"We sure will! Now, come on!" Misa hooked her arm with Ebony's and proceeded to all but drag the unwilling girl to the door, the young model not even pausing as she called over her shoulder, "We'll be out late, so don't wait up!"

And with that, both girls and Matsuda were out the door.

-oooOooo-

"She won't be any trouble at all! I promise!"

Ebony shifted slightly in discomfort as Misa spoke to the director. Nishinaka, was his name, if her memory was serving her this day. He seemed torn on whether or not to let her in.

"Please, Director!" Misa begged, "Ebony-chan is Misa's very good friend, and she hasn't been out and about in weeks! I had to drag her out today and she'll just go back if she can't come in, and Misa won't stand for that!"

'_That can be arranged,'_ Ebony thought sarcastically, _'All I'd have to do is break your legs.'_

Finally, on the word of Misa and Matsuda that she was always perfectly behaved, the director finally allowed her onto the set. Ebony thought it was more to keep Misa satisfied rather than believing that the white haired girl would be no trouble, but she wisely kept that opinion to herself.

Ebony had to admit it was interesting watching a movie production. She sat quietly in a seat Matsuda had gotten for her and kicked her bare feet back and forth, flexing her toes that were enjoying the cool air after being in L's headquarters for almost a month now. She suddenly realized that she hadn't left the building at all during that time.

'_Maybe it __**was**__ a good thing for me to get out for a while…'_ Ebony mused as she watched a few people getting in some last minute rehearsal before going before the camera.

"So?" Misa plopped into a seat next to her and passed her a bottle of water. She must be on her break, "How is it to watch a movie in the making?"

"It's actually kind of fun," Ebony admitted after gratefully taking a long drink of water and folding her legs to sit cross-legged as was her habit, "I had wondered exactly how they do everything for movies."

"Well, now you know!" Misa then grinned and lowered her voice, "Does Ebony-chan have a boyfriend?"

"What?" Ebony cocked her head to the side, slightly confused by the sudden change in topic, "Boyfriend? No. Why?"

"How old are you?" Misa asked, ignoring Ebony's question.

"E-eighteen," Ebony stammered, "I just turned eighteen while I was in confinement."

"You spent your eighteenth birthday in a dinky old cell?!" Misa gasped, apparently horrified at the thought.

"Well, yeah," Ebony frowned, "Why are you acting like that's the most heinous thing to happen in the history of mankind? I've never celebrated my birthdays. Never saw the point in it."

"Oh well. We can fix that later," Misa diverted the topic to what she'd originally wanted and giggled excitedly, "Misa has noticed some guys looking at you. Does Ebony-chan want me to tell them she's single?"

"No!" Ebony shook her head so harshly it was a wonder how she avoided giving herself whiplash.

"Why not?" Misa pouted. She had decided then and there to see to it that Ebony developed some form of love life whether she wanted one or not, "Don't you want a boyfriend?"

"I'm not good with relationships, Misa-san," Ebony replied as she moved the bottle in her hand, watching the water inside spin around in a tiny tornado, "Besides, no one would want to be in a romantic relationship with me. Everyone thinks I'm ugly and a freak."

"Who thinks you're ugly?" Misa asked, her eyes wide with shock.

"Everybody," Ebony shrugged, "That's why guys don't talk to me and why I have no friends. Well, except for Ryuzaki. He's my friend, but that's about it."

"Pfft! You're not ugly!" Misa stated as she placed her hands on her hips, staring at her like she had a third eye, "Anyone who says so is a moron! You just can't see how guys look at you, but Misa does! If she told them you're single, Ebony-chan would be surrounded by men in two seconds!"

"If you say so," Ebony sighed as she set her elbow on her knee and rested her cheek against her white palm, "Doesn't matter. Love has no place in my life, never has…Have you ever loved before?" Ebony suddenly asked, "Besides Light-san, I mean. Real love, not fake teen love."

"Yeah, once, before my parents were killed," Misa heaved a wistful sigh as she played with the hem of her shirt, "We'd been dating for about a year and a half, and I really thought he was the one for me. I thought we were going to build a life together and get married and have kids and all of that stuff. But when my parents were killed, I was really a wreck. I would start crying at completely random times and the fact that their killer might be let off really bothered me. He tried to help me through it, he really did, but in the end he just couldn't deal with it, so we went our separate ways.

"We didn't hate each other, though," Misa smiled at Ebony despite the story's sadness, "We just knew it wasn't going to work, so we said goodbye."

"Hm. Means he wasn't the one for you, I guess," Ebony took a drink from her bottle, "People who are truly meant to be stick by each other no matter how hard it is. That's what love is at its core. Willing to face whatever obstacles might come your way just for the complicatedly simple desire to be with someone."

"For someone who's never been in love, you sure know a lot about it," Misa commented.

"I read a lot," Ebony shrugged, "And I've seen it in people when walking down the streets. I've also seen fake love, and also attraction that's based solely on physical pleasure. It's easy to tell the difference by now even though I've never felt it myself."

"Well, Misa will just have to find you a boyfriend so you can know what it feels like," Misa grinned, "Because being in love is wonderful! There's nothing like it!"

"I'm sure," Ebony said, her voice flat, "But it's highly unlikely. What makes you think you can help me with this kind of thing when everyone avoids me like I have the Plague or something? Moot point," Ebony looked away from the bouncing blonde, "I'm not looking for love, so it doesn't matter in the least bit."

"I still can't believe you've never been in love before," Misa sighed, "Haven't you at least had a crush? Just once?"

"No. And even if I did, I'd never tell you," Ebony gave her apparel a quick once-over, scrunching her nose like she'd smelled something nasty, "Knowing Ryuzaki, I wouldn't put it past him to have bugged you, and I don't feel like telling him anything I'd rather keep to myself. See, the skeletons in my closet are complete pre-Madonnas, and they don't feel like dancing."

While Misa didn't really understand what she meant, several miles away in an ordinary-looking high-rise building, Light laughed as he worked.

"Seems Ebony knows you better than you thought, Ryuzaki," Light chuckled at the mildly surprised and disappointed look that had overtaken the strange detective's features, "She's a smart girl. I should know; I tutored her for four months back in high school."

"Yes, she told me that," L replied, still a bit bummed that he wasn't able to dig into Ebony's pretty head by putting her in a situation that would result in 'girl talk', "She said she hated math."

"Oh yeah! She sure did," Light shook his head in remembrance, "I'm just lucky she has such a good hold on her temper. I did see her yell at a textbook though, when she thought I was gone to the bathroom."

"That doesn't surprise me," L mused over Light's third sentence, "Her hold on her temper can't be too good. She gets angry with me quite often and usually resorts to mild acts of violence against me."

"Who knows?" Light shrugged, still going through some files he'd recently hacked into as he spoke, "Maybe she likes you."

"If Ebony-chan thought positively of me, wouldn't she avoid things that may cause me to think negatively of her?" L asked.

"Well, she's always been a little weird like that," Light answered, "She's nicest to strangers and is only ever sarcastic or rude with people she knows well or she feels threatened by. To be honest, I think that's just her way of playing."

L rolled that around in his head. It made sense. She felt safe to tease or bicker with those she knew well while she was polite to those she didn't know. And she had said that he was her best friend, so her losing her temper with him would make sense if she was indeed just playing games.

-oooOooo-

"Do you want me to kill you, Ryuzaki?!"

That was the first thing Ebony said when she, Misa, and Matsuda reentered headquarters. The next thing she did was swing her arm around L's neck and begin digging her knuckles into his shaggy black hair, much to the surprise of the man that hair was attached to.

"Not particularly," L replied, his voice a little muffled by Ebony's sleeve as he tried to get out of her grip. It was a bit difficult since he had been crouching in his chair, thus leaving him in the lower position of vulnerability.

"Then quit siding with Misa-san on things or it won't just be Kira that you'll have to worry about!" Ebony finally released his head and plopped down in the chair she usually used. L rubbed his abused skull and gave her a flat look.

"Oh, don't look at me in that tone of voice," L's immediately confused expression made her burst out laughing, "Sorry! But I love saying that! People's expressions are always hilarious!"

"Ah. I see," L's lips slowly curled into a grin. Perhaps Light was right about Ebony. Maybe she only harassed him because she enjoyed word games. He had assumed as much before, but now that Light had also come to the same conclusion, he was that much more certain of his own deductions. L proceeded to spin in his chair again while Ebony left, mumbling something about using what was left of the day to finish her laundry.

"Misa-san?" L grabbed the blonde's attention, "Is there any particular reason why Ebony-chan disliked the outing so much?"

Even though Misa had been bugged, Ebony had somehow found the tiny microphone and, judging from the sudden keening and crunching sound, must have crushed it between her fingers not long after stating her suspicion.

"Oh, she's just still embarrassed," Misa giggled as she leaned her elbows on Light's shoulders, much to his discomfort, "Misa 'accidentally' let it slip that she's single and about four or five guys asked her out! Also, someone took her picture and wanted to publish it in a fashion magazine, offering her a job as a model. Ebony-chan didn't like that at all. She got all mad."

It took a surprising amount of effort on his part for L to keep himself from being visibly upset by her words. He was completely aware of how men acted around Ebony even though she was somehow blissfully clueless.

"Ebony-chan is single?!" Matsuda exclaimed, shocked that such a beautiful girl wasn't in a relationship. He looked at L, "I'd thought for sure that…well…"

"When everyone is done acting like teenagers," Aizawa interrupted with a huff, "Can we please get back to the investigation?"

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Author's Note: Misa and her antics! What are you gonna do? Am I writing her right? Please let me know.

-HaleyJo


	25. Talk With Watari

Author's Note: 103 reviews! 103 reviews! Can you believe it?! _103!!_ Boo-yaa!

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**25. TALK WITH WATARI**

L gripped the back of his rotating chair, his bare toes flexing against the cushion beneath him. He was still taking no interest in the case at all, but he was getting rather bored. He just _knew_ that Yagami Light was Kira, but he couldn't find any proof, not to mention how Light seemed completely unaware of his own guilty status unlike before, when he'd been fully aware of and hiding it.

He enjoyed Ebony's singing, though. She wasn't singing, really, just humming softly. It was that same lullaby-like tune he'd heard during her confinement and when he had taken that rare walk in the park months ago. The music brought him close to what he assumed it was like to fall asleep. She was humming as she worked on something in a large black book she'd brought down with her from her room today. When asked, she'd told him it was her sketchbook but she wouldn't let him see her work. With a faint red hue spilling over her cheekbones, she'd mumbled that they were private and angled herself so L would have to move in order to see what she was working on.

"Ryuzaki," L turned his head from Ebony to the teenage male, "I know you're not into this, but come over here for a second."

L shifted his seat closer and leaned in to see what Light was talking about, his long hand on his shoulder for balance.

"Take a look at this. Look at the change here," Light pointed to the screen, "And look at this sudden growth."

L's dark eyes widened from their half-closed state as he placed his index finger against his mouth.

"Y…Yagami-kun…" A grin twisted his lips, his face coming alive again with excitement.

"How about now?" Light asked happily, "You ready to get to work?"

"What is it?" Ebony asked, standing from her seat and going behind the two men to peek over their shoulders.

"If this is connected to Kira," L was saying, "then punishing criminals may not be the true goal of this Kira…"

"Yeah, it's possible that punishing criminals is camouflage while he kills for monetary reasons."

"So this dude is a greedy bastard, then," Ebony stated from behind them while Matsuda came to join them, "Another Kira has popped up?"

"That may well be the case," L responded, "Impressive research, Yagami-kun."

"Thanks. It's all thanks to this new system that allows us to access police, public, and media data from all over the world," Light began explaining. Matsuda's efforts to be noticed were in vain, "At first I didn't know what to look for, but I started over with the idea that Kira was in Japan and searched based on that.

"It's a fact that a majority of those killed are in Japan. And when you compare the deaths with media coverage, it's clear that Kira gets his information from these local Japanese sources. Since Kira kills with heart attacks, I thought there may be some victims that we haven't been able to pin on him yet."

"So you looked for stuff that helped this Yotsuba company," Ebony stated as her eyes moved over the screen. She wasn't as smart as Light or L, but she wasn't stupid either and she knew how to read.

"Yes. See, here," Light pointed, "Two companies, Sekimaru and Aoi, their stocks have been plummeting while Yotsuba has been steadily rising."

"So then you did further research into other deaths involving people in the business world…?" L trailed off as he thought.

"Yeah, and look," Light punched a few keys, "Thirteen deaths that were beneficial to Yotsuba in only three months. From the other company's point of view, only two or three were beneficial. Besides those earlier three, the rest died in accidents or by disease. One committed suicide and two were killed this week by Kira, after being indicted for corruption."

"These three months after you were put in confinement and the killings stopped and then resumed," L thought aloud, "That intrigues me."

"That's true," Light nodded, "What do you think? I have to conclude that Kira is supporting Yotsuba."

"But if that's the case…"

"Yeah…"

"Kira can kill in ways other than heart attacks!!"

"Why so happy, Ebony-chan?" L asked her suddenly, noticing her giddy expression.

"This is just too cool!" She grinned, allowing her excitement to filter through, "We finally have a real lead!"

"Yes. Yes we do," L was happy to see her so happy, something that had been lacking somewhat recently. She hadn't been gloomy, just…subdued, would be a good word for it.

'_She's beautiful when she smiles…'_

-oooOooo-

Ebony came out of the kitchen with a bowl full of bright red cherries. Since L was keeping Watari from Light's eyes, she had more or less taken over the job of bringing L whatever craving he was having that day. On this day, he seemed to be wanting cherries. After settling back in her own seat, she set her black sketchbook in her lap and tapped the white eraser of her black mechanical pencil against her lip, pondering what to draw.

Matsuda's voice broke the brief silence there'd been in the room.

"Chief! And Mogi too, welcome back."

'_Mogi?'_ Ebony cocked her head to the side, having never met this brick-wall man before. She'd heard his name mentioned before, though, and L wasn't stopping him from entering the building, so she didn't think any more on it as she listened to them talk.

"The police have officially given up now."

"Huh?!"

"Given up?" Ebony questioned as Light stood suddenly, confused by this news.

"I've talked it over with Mogi," Soichiro said, "and he seems determined to remain here. Aizawa, Matsuda," Ebony's eyes widened. If he was using their real names, something serious must have happened, "if you want to continue going after Kira, you need to join Mogi and me…

"…and resign from the NPA!"

"W…why would they have to do that?" Ebony asked. Common courtesy told her to keep her mouth shut, but she'd grown fond of these men after hanging around them for several months and worried for them and their families.

"It's simple. I was told we would be fired if we continue to work with L," Soichiro explained, his voice showing his contempt for his superiors' decision, "They may have been threatened by Kira, but that's the decision from the top."

"And you really intend to quit, Chief?" Matsuda asked.

"Yes. In a few hours, I will no longer be the chief. Each of you has your own life. Take time to decide. We aren't just risking our lives now."

"Yeah…" Matsuda realized the gravity of this situation, "Especially if you have a wife and kids…"

"I think you should all go back to the police," L said suddenly, still looking at his bowl of cherries, "I was all alone in the beginning. Almost every police officer turned their backs to me when the threat of losing their lives became reality…With the support you guys gave me until now, I'll be able to continue this case on my own. And I swear to return and see you guys one day with Kira's head."

"Ryuzaki, as long as I'm around, you won't be alone," Light lifted his chained wrist, "Don't forget about this."

"Right, you will be with me until we catch Kira, Yagami-kun," L agreed, "But the rest of you should return to the police."

"I'm staying too," Ebony smiled over her knees that she'd pulled to her chest in response to the tense situation, "I don't have any other conceivable obligations without school or a job, and honestly, I'd just miss you all."

"Yes. Ebony-chan will stay too," L agreed, happy with her statement. He had been worried for some time now that his causing her to lose her scholarship and her job would cause her to resent him. He was glad that that was not the case.

"Ryuzaki, you're the one who said you'd need the help of the police for this case," Soichiro reminded him.

"I did, but that was because with you guys I could maintain a connection to the police, and I figured pursuing Kira as an organization would be more beneficial. Like during the Sakura TV incident, for example. Two or three civilians who have quit the force do not count as the police. And if the police have decided to not catch Kira," L concluded as he lifted a set of cherries from the bowl and stuck them in his mouth, "then forget about it."

"It's true that if we quit the police we won't be of much help to you, but what about our feelings?" Soichiro objected, "We've come this far, risking our lives in the process. Whether we quit the police force and pursue Kira or return to the police and give up, I think we at least deserve to make that decision ourselves."

"You're right," L decided as he removed the cherry stems from his mouth, inspecting the knot he'd tied them into with his tongue. Despite the tense situation, Ebony almost laughed since, according to popular opinion, people who could knot cherry stems with their tongue were good kissers. But she just couldn't get an image of L kissing anybody into her head, it was too impossible, "Then please choose."

"But Chief," Aizawa gained Soichiro's attention, "Frankly, if we quit the force, then we're unemployed…Even if we do catch Kira, what about the future? As Matsuda said, you and I have a family. I don't know if I can sacrifice them for…"

"The future, eh? I haven't thought about it, but…after I catch Kira," Soichiro then smiled, one of the few true smiles he'd shown since the case started almost a year ago. Despite the graying his hair had suffered after his heart attack, his smile made him seem so much younger and brighter than before, "There's always a new career!"

Ebony smiled as the Chief's inspiring words helped Matsuda make his decision. The young man was so happy to finally feel useful. And he wouldn't be unemployed since he was Misa's manager, and he'd only been a detective through connections his father had.

But what about Aizawa? He had two small children, one still in a stroller. It wasn't as bad for Soichiro since his kids were almost fully grown, but Aizawa's were still so young. He needed to have a stable job with stable income. He couldn't just quit out of the blue like this. Aizawa asked if he could stay in the NPA and help out when he had the time, but L said he couldn't since he'd think him a spy for the NPA while the NPA would think him a spy for L.

"Aizawa-san," Ebony spoke up after Matsuda was done rambling, "No one would think ill of you if you leave. We all know you have two small children to worry about. Yagami-san's are near grown, so it's easier for him. There's nothing to be ashamed of at all by staying with the NPA for your family's sake. It's noble of you, really."

"Thank you, Ebony…but," Aizawa shook his head in frustration, "It's not fair, damn it…I want to keep going too…I've come this far, prepared to die at any time…and…if I quit now, how will I ever be able to face Ukita…? Damn it!" Ebony flinched from his raised voice, but she kept her hands from going to her ears by clenching her fingers around her knees, "Why the hell can't a detective on the police force go after a criminal?!"

"_Ryuzaki,"_ Watari's voice suddenly came through the laptop on the counter.

"What is it, Watari?" L asked.

"_In the beginning, you had me make preparations so that everyone on the task force and their families would be financially secured no matter what happened, including if they were fired from the police force,"_ Everyone's eyes widened at this news, _"Why are you not mentioning that?"_

"Who asked you, Watari?"

"_Oh…sorry, I just couldn't bear to listen anymore…"_

"Whoa…so we've already been taken care of financially?" Matsuda grinned and turned to Aizawa, "This is great, Aizawa! As long as you're ok with giving up the title of detective, you can continue the case now!"

"Ryuzaki…"

"Yes?"

Aizawa turned to the man hunched in his chair, "You were watching to see whether I'd quit the force or not, weren't you?"

"Of course not, Aizawa," Soichiro held up a pacifying hand. Ebony couldn't watch, so she instead watched as Misa laughed at something someone was telling her over her cell phone, "Ryuzaki just doesn't like to reveal stuff like that."

"Yeah," Matsuda added, "You know he can be weird like that."

"No," L disagreed, "I was testing him. I wanted to see which he'd choose."

"….Alright…I'm quitting here to return to the NPA!" Aizawa announced, "I couldn't decide immediately like you guys, and I was leaning towards going back to the force…"

"Don't take it personally…" Matsuda stammered out.

"No. I'm quitting. This just made things crystal clear," Aizawa looked back to L, "I don't like Ryuzaki. I don't like the way he works."

"That's a normal reaction, Aizawa-san," L replied without turning around, "Though I like people like you."

"I also hate how you say corny stuff like that," Aizawa scowled and spun on his heel, stalking to the door, "I'm leaving."

"Take care."

-oooOooo-

Ebony spun around in the wheeled chair she was using, not watching much of anything as it whirred by. Watari smiled at her antics, which reminded him of L's sometimes. She had many childish aspects of her personality that she allowed to shine through unlike most people her age, or people in general. He still worried about her, though, since she also had many quirks about her that could allude to darker things.

"Watari," Ebony grabbed his attention, "Exactly how long is L planning on being handcuffed to Light?"

"I'm really not sure. He doesn't share his plans with anyone really, and I am not an exception," Watari replied, knowing the answer to his next question but wanting to hear what reason she would give, "Why do you ask?"

"I don't know," Ebony pouted a little, fiddling with her dime earring, "It's just kind of awkward to talk to L with other people there. They give me funny looks and I don't like it."

"So you wish you two had more time alone like you used to?"

"Yes. Hey! I didn't mean it like that!" Ebony objected, her cheeks turning a nice shade of pink to match her eyes.

"Like what?"

"I'm not stupid. You intentionally made it sound like a love interest," Ebony pointed out, "That's just silly."

"Really?" Watari smiled his grandfather smile, his silver-blue eyes crinkling pleasantly, "I've never found love to be a silly thing."

"It isn't. It isn't supposed to be because it can hurt like Hell," Ebony grumbled through her teeth, "But it's such a fickle thing, not to be trusted. I wonder why Misa-san can love Light so much. There's no such thing as 'love at first sight,' so why does she insist upon that?"

"You would have to ask her," Watari replied. He knew she had changed the subject on purpose, but he decided to play along, "I find love at first sight a silly idea too."

"That's good, because it's not real. If it were real," Ebony looked at the ground, her bare toes curling around one of the chair's wheels, "parents would always love their children, wouldn't they?"

Watari looked at the sad girl, sympathy in his eyes as he watched her curl up into a fetal position on her chair, wrapping her little arms around her legs and resting her chin on her knees. He had feared that she'd suffered abuse from a parent or guardian, and this was a clear indicator that it was a parent from whom she had tried to garner some love and failed. This would explain why her actions around L were so awkward sometimes. She was terrified of loving him due to her past experiences with love, and watching Misa and Light's one-sided, manipulative relationship probably wasn't giving her any good examples to learn from.

"That's true, but is avoiding love altogether really any better than taking that risk?" Watari asked, gently pushing her. As L's surrogate father of sorts, he wanted to see his 'son' happy, wanted to see his 'son' be loved in the way he needed, find someone to give him the one thing Watari couldn't.

"…I don't know," Ebony shifted uncomfortably in her seat.

"Well, think about it some," Watari turned back to the computer, looking through some information L had requested earlier, "You'll figure out what to do eventually."

Ebony watched the old man, thankful that she'd found someone to talk to in L's stead. She couldn't talk to any of the task force because they were so focused on the case, except maybe Matsuda, but he was a bit too…flighty for her tastes. She didn't really know Light well enough to interact with him easily and Misa got overexcited too easily to have any deeper conversations with. That and she usually wanted to use her like an oversized Barbie doll. She started spinning again with a frustrated sigh, completely irritated with herself.

"Watari," She called his attention again, "Why did L trick Aizawa like he did?"

"Again, I'm really not sure. As I said before, he doesn't ever fully share his plans with anyone."

"…It seemed rather cruel, to be honest. Aizawa has a temper, but he's not a bad guy, not at all," Ebony scrunched her nose, "Light's the twit."

"Ryuzaki's methods may seem…harsh," Watari decided on that word after a brief consideration, "But his intentions aren't ever to hurt anyone. He's just trying to do what's right."

Ebony mulled that over. L's testing of Aizawa had really stuck in her mind, irritating her like a bad itch she couldn't find. She couldn't really understand his motives for the test, and it was driving her nuts. But still…Watari was right. As much as she searched through her memory, she couldn't think of a single instance in which she saw L do anything other than what he thought was right at the time. Despite his blunt nature and inability to trust anyone, L valued life and was very brave.

All she had to do was look back on his actions toward her to see it. He worried whenever he didn't know where she was or if she was feeling down for whatever reason. He seemed to value her company and had tried to keep her life running smoothly for as long as he could until the confinement happened.

With a tiny smile, Ebony realized that even if he didn't trust her, even if he never would trust her, she trusted him.

Completely.

* * *

Author's Note: This chapter made me kind of sad with Aizawa leaving. I like Aizawa.

**RyokoUri:** Thank you so much for your reviews. You're sweet, and your review wasn't dumb. You rock!

**Hao'sAnjul:** A normal person may have gotten madder, but L knows Ebony doesn't appreciate the attention she gets from other people and prefers to deny it exists at all. Also, L's just not normal and he rarely gets noticeably angry. Unless he's kicking the crap out of Light, of course.

**sun-sun kat:** I'm pretty sure Misa has dark eyes too, but she's seen with blue eyes on the front cover of the fourth manga and in the first half of the anime. I assume she wears blue contacts or something for the whole blue-eyes-blonde-hair thing until she grows up some. And what do you mean about B? What sounds the same? I'm confused.

**RaveM:** I'm following the story right now and just sticking Ebony in it until it branches off into my own storyline.

Please review for me!

-HaleyJo


	26. Photo

Author's Note: This chapter is going to drive you guys nuts.

* * *

**26. PHOTO**

Ebony drummed her fingers against the corner she was hiding behind halfway up the floating staircase, watching carefully as two people approached the rest of the team.

"I'm Aiber, professional con artist. Nice to meet you," Aiber was a tall man in a pinstripe suit over a striped dress shirt that had the first two buttons undone. That combined with his slightly long blonde hair and his hands in his pockets gave him a laid back air.

"Wedy. I'm a thief," Wedy was also rather tall and blonde, wearing sunglasses and a fuzzy black hat. Her outfit was sort of business-like too with a plaid design that wasn't overdone over black tights and pumps, her hands covered by dainty white gloves, one of which held a medium-sized handbag.

"A con man and a thief?" Soichiro was uneasy, which was understandable. He may not be a detective anymore, but he still was a by-the-book type of man.

"Yes. Aiber is an expert when it comes to languages, psychology, and personality transformation. He possesses the skills to blend into all levels of society, and can always form a strong bond with his target. We'll use him to get close," L introduced them respectively, "Wedy is a thief who can get past any lock, security system, and vault. The proof of her skills is that she was able to get into this building without any of us knowing. They're both seasoned criminals."

"We'll be working with criminals?" Soichiro asked, still tense.

"They're slightly different from the criminals Kira punishes, though," L said, "These two are pros, only known in the underworld. I also know other criminals that could help us, if needed. Of course, none of them want to show their faces, and I will only show mine to those I trust. And some of them would have to live here with us. This is a tactic I couldn't really use while we were connected to the police, but with the way things are now…"

"I see," Light nodded, "These kinds of people will be helpful in investigating Yotsuba."

"Yes…Ebony-chan? Why are you hiding?" L asked, stepping forward and dragging Light with him. He heard that humming noise Ebony made when she was thinking.

"I can't think of a believable excuse," She said, still keeping herself hidden.

"Are you afraid?" L asked.

"Not in the least bit," They could see her from the knees down, one of her toes twisting against a step. Heaving a sigh, she peeked out from behind the corner, "As long as nothing is said, nothing will happen."

L wondered what that meant, but he knew better by now than to try to pry it from her pale rose lips. Ebony was a bit smarter than your average secret keeper. Instead of stringing together lie after lie, she simply kept her mouth shut altogether. She didn't care if people knew she was hiding something just as long as no one could find out what that something was.

Sometime later that day while Aiber and Wedy were settling in, Ebony spun in her chair, kicking her little feet back and forth as she did so to either speed up or slow down. Her mind was racing as it always did even though she didn't really think she had much to worry about. She'd more or less severed all possible links, anything that could possibly follow her into her new life. She hadn't left even the slightest clue as to her whereabouts or even if she was alive at all. She should have never seen anyone she knew from before, just by face or otherwise.

But then, she hadn't exactly planned L into her equation, and she certainly hadn't planned on him knowing and using professional criminals famous in the underworld. It seemed that you could never plan for everything no matter how careful you are about it.

Her only advantage now was the fact that she was stubbornly tight-lipped. She wasn't so naïve to have thought that L didn't notice something was up, though. She wondered what he thought. The man had a creepy way of knowing things he shouldn't, even more so than Light. Light was a genius, she had to give him that, but L had something Light didn't and she just couldn't put her finger on it. It was almost like L had a sixth sense for seeing everyone for what they really are, to be able to sense the purity or corruption of the human soul no matter how well people tried to hide from his all-knowing gaze.

It must be both a blessing and a curse to have such eyes.

"Ebony-chan! Ebony-chan!" Ebony was pulled from her thoughts when Misa suddenly rushed in from her floor, waving around a popular fashion magazine, "Come look! You're in here with me!"

Everything stopped in her mind.

Completely.

Ebony stared at Misa with incredibly wide eyes. They looked as wide as L's, which was amazing given how large the man's eyes were. Her face seemed almost confused under the shock, her lips slightly parted, and it didn't seem like she was breathing. Sensing the tension in the room, everyone watched as Ebony stood and made her way over to the oblivious Misa with careful steps. She took the magazine Misa held out to her and flipped to the page Misa was prattling on about.

And there, right in the center of the page for all of Japan to see, was an image of Misa hooking arms with Ebony to lead them away from her movie shoot.

"Misa-san," Ebony wasn't looking at her, her bangs hiding her eyes. Her voice was very soft and from a few feet away, L tensed, "Why is this picture in here? I asked you not to let them use it, remember? I asked several times."

"I know you asked me not to, but it's so perfect," Misa squealed, "The agency has been getting calls all day asking if you're a model and if they can do a shoot of you and-"

_SMACK!!_

It happened way too fast for anyone to stop it or even see it coming, but in the next second, Misa was on her floor, holding her left cheek that was a bright red and even beginning to tint a slight purple, unshed tears gathering in her made-blue-by-contacts eyes. Ebony still stood, her left hand crumpling the magazine while her other was still stretched out from when she'd hit the young model.

"Misa!" Light came back to reality first and knelt beside Misa, taking her palm from her face to inspect the damage. He then turned to glare at Ebony, "What the hell is your problem?! Are you nuts?!"

Instead of answering, Ebony dropped the crumpled magazine and crossed her arms before her face as though parrying a blow, thus hiding her face from view. L stood from his chair and approached Ebony carefully, gingerly wrapping his long fingers around her slim wrists and prying her arms apart as gently as he could. Her head was bowed, her bangs still hiding her face. Her balance shifted when L moved her arms, causing her forehead to bump lightly against his chest. Her fingers clenched and unclenched where L held them, her breathing slightly shaky.

"Ebony-chan?" L dipped his head down to try to look at her face, but she kept it hidden, "Why are you so upset?"

Ebony stayed still and silent for a while longer before she tugged her wrists from L's hands and walked shakily back to her chair. She sat down and folded her arms on the countertop, hiding her face in the thin limbs.

"Ebony-chan?" L shuffled closer to her. Now that he was closer, he could see her shoulders trembling, "Ebony-chan?"

A sudden sound came from the girl. It sounded kind of like a signal breaking up. Then she lifted her head and…

…She was laughing. As if everyone wasn't confused enough already, now the girl was laughing. Laughing!

"Ah, it's a good thing my life's been shot to hell since my mother got pregnant with me!" She turned her grin to Misa, "Means you can't mess up my life too badly since I'm already screwed! Ha!"

"Ebony, are you sane?" L pressed his fingertips to her forehead, worried that she was getting sick again, "You're upset, but you're laughing."

"Oh, I doubt I'm sane," Ebony continued giggling like an idiot, "If I was, that would be a problem. And laughing is better than crying, isn't it?"

'_So, she's afraid to cry,'_ L mused, worry building in his gut.

"Sh-shouldn't you apologize to Misa-Misa?" Matsuda asked. The porcelain girl was starting to freak him out.

"My insincere apologies, Misa-san," Ebony's giggling still refused to cease. L almost cracked a smile despite the upsetting situation. That was rather clever.

"Ebony, you need to apologize to Misa," Light said as he helped a shocked Misa from the floor, "And actually mean it."

"I'm not fond of lying," Ebony said, her giggling finally dying down as she sobered up, "I can't honestly say that I'm sorry right now, because I'm not."

"Ebony-chan," L tapped her shoulder to bring her attention to him, "Are you going to tell us what happened?"

"No, I don't think I will," Ebony sighed, resting her head against her fingertips, "It'll all spill out within the next few days anyway," She started giggling again, "Seems the skeletons in my closet are dancing!"

L's eyes widened as he instantly made the connection. Something was going to happen.

Something bad.

And it was going to happen very soon.

* * *

Author's Note: Yep. Crap is about to happen. Surprise, surprise. I know Ebony is sounding a bit like a nut now, but the girl's distraught! Give her a break!

**MythCreatorWriter:** Your review was funny. 'Aw...! She trusts L! Great, now fall in love!' That made me giggle!

**Hao'sAnjul:** Perhaps, my friend, perhaps. Feelings are definitely there.

**nekosoulreaper: **I like Watari too and I also felt like he didn't get enough time in the manga or anime. He's such a sweet old man, I imagine. He sort of reminds me of my grandpa, only my grandpa was more blunt. And I'm glad you like Ebony. I really didn't think she'd be this well received by everybody, but you all seem to like her. Yay!

**RaveM:** Now what fun would it be for me to spoil everything. If this helps at all, L is my favorite character in the story too aside from Ryuk. Ryuk rocks!

That's about it for this chapter. Please review for me!

-HaleyJo


	27. Silent

Author's Note: Another chapter. Surprise, surprise, right?

* * *

**27. SILENT**

The entire building felt the tension.

Ebony had been completely silent and relatively still since yesterday after she'd hit Misa for allowing her photo to be published in that fashion magazine. Ok, so maybe not completely silent. A more correct wording would be that she hadn't said a word to anyone. She had been humming quite a lot, something Light and L assumed was a calming method for her. Light had tried to talk to her several times, but she'd ignored him completely. Everyone tried talking to her at some point, but all had given up after she refused to talk even to L.

During the silence, Light went over his memories of the Kira case. Kira did sound a lot like him, he had to admit. If he had such abilities, he might use them to kill criminals, to purge the world of evil, so to speak…

No! He couldn't be Kira! He would never become a murderer no matter what the reason. He just couldn't. It went against everything he stood for, not to mention what his father stood for. Being a mass murderer like Kira was the greatest act of disrespect he could ever commit toward the man who had sired and raised him.

"Yagami-kun," L's listless voice broke his thoughts.

"Hmm?"

"What's with the serious face?" L asked.

"Nothing. Just tired from staring at the monitor all day," Light shook the last remnants of his thoughts away and focused himself on what really mattered, "I've hacked into the Yotsuba company computer, but there's nothing here that leads to Kira. Not that I expected them to leave that kind of evidence here, though."

"Wow," L leaned over to look at the screen, blocking Light's view of it, "With skills like this, I bet you could have hacked into the police system too."

'_It's true that I've hacked into my dad's work computer at the police,'_ Light frowned at the back of L's head, _'But that was to try to solve the Kira case on my own, not because I am Kira.'_

"You're still saying stuff like that, Ryuzaki?" Light's tone was as civil as he could make it given his upset state, "You can suspect me all you want but I hope you're paying attention to what's going on in front of us."

"You're right. We must catch the current Kira," L leaned back so he was out of Light's personal space, "There's no mistake that he will lead us closer to a final resolution to case."

A sudden beeping noise caused a few in the room to jump, but they calmed down when Watari's voice came over the laptop, _"Ryuzaki!"_

"What is it, Watari?"

"_Detective Eraldo Coil has been asked to 'uncover L's identity'. They went through two agents to try to keep the client a secret, but I've determined that the request came from Yotsuba's group Tokyo office VP of rights and planning, Kida Masahiko,"_ Everyone gathered around the monitor except for Ebony, who stayed in her seat as though her butt had been glued to the chair, _"100,000 up front, and 1,400,000 on completion."_

"Great work, Watari," L commented.

"So it is Yotsuba!" Soichiro exclaimed, glad for some new evidence before his voice became somber, "Eraldo Coil is said to be one of the best detectives out there, besides L. He's famous for taking any job, as long as the money is good, and he's near the top in terms of locating people."

"If Yotsuba is connected to Kira and wants to know L's identity," Light thought out loud, something he'd become accustomed to since working with L, "Then that means they'll kill you once they uncover it."

"This is bad…We're already short-handed here and now we have to worry about Coil," Soichiro said seriously, his hand rubbing his chin, "And nobody knows what Coil looks like, either…"

"There's nothing to worry about. Eraldo Coil," L stated without looking up, "is also me."

"Huh?! You're Coil?!"

"The three top detectives in the world, L, Coil, and Deneuve, all are me. Please don't tell anyone, though."

'_That explains how he got the money for this place,'_ Ebony mused from her seat, _'His "Coil" alter ego is somewhat of a con man like Aiber, though he does complete his jobs instead of dropping off the face of the earth like Aiber does.'_

"People who are trying to uncover me usually fall for this," L explained, "Watari acts as the intermediary for both Coil and Deneuve, so it's obvious."

"Nice one, Ryuzaki," Light commented, quite impressed. A few more clicks on his keyboard and- "There, found him! Kida Masahiko. He's on the Yotsuba employee list."

The screen showed the image of a dark haired man with small eyes hidden behind a pair of angled, black-rimmed glasses, and thin lips. He looked like the very serious type.

"I can't imagine that a VP, even for Yotsuba, would be able to move around that kind of money so easily," Soichiro frowned at the screen, "Does that mean he's Kira?"

"I don't think we can be sure of that," Light disagreed.

"Really? Kira could get money in a variety of ways," Soichiro pushed up his glasses as he explained his thoughts, "Actually, he could probably extort Yotsuba with just the mere fact that he is Kira."

"That would mean that Kira would be raising Yotsuba's worth and making money off of that. But like you said, Dad," Light continued hitting keys on the keyboard, "Kira wouldn't need to do that to make money. He could just threaten to kill the Yotsuba president unless he was given a large sum of money."

"Yes, it's presumptive to assume that Kida is Kira just yet," L agreed, "Now that we've come this far, we can use Aiber and Wedy."

Soon the two were called down from their rooms. Aiber was dressed similarly to how he was before, only he had a pair of sunglasses sitting atop his head until need for them arose. He leaned against the desk, arms crossed, with a photo of Kida in his hand.

"So I just need to get close to him?" He asked as he glanced at the photo, "No problem."

"And you want me to make it possible to get around the security cameras at this Yotsuba company where he works?" Wedy asked as she puffed smoke from between her made-up lips. Both got an affirmative from L.

Ebony tuned out most of the following instructions, her toes starting to wiggle against the chair's wheels. Her nerves were starting to become more than a little fidgety, this wait beginning to really stress her out. She knew exactly what was going to happen soon and that there was nothing anyone could do. She bit her lip to keep from humming, knowing that would alert the others in the room. She took a deep breath to calm herself, letting it out slowly enough so no one heard.

Things were interrupted when Watari called over the laptop again.

"What is it, Watari?"

"_Matsuda-san is sending a distress signal from his belt buckle."_

"…From where?" L asked, annoyance building in his gut.

"_It seems to be coming from the Yotsuba Tokyo office."_

"What is Matsuda doing?!" Soichiro gasped in disbelief, "If he is uncovered-"

"If he's sending a distress signal, then there's a chance he already has been," Light pinched the bridge of his nose between his fingers, his brow furrowed in thought.

"Then he'll probably be killed," Aiber sighed, shaking his head in disappointment.

"Forget everything I just said," L groaned, pressing his index finger to his temple, "We'll need to rethink our plan….Stupid Matsuda."

Ebony sighed and let her head fall against the counter with a dull thud. Due to her nearly comatose behavior since the day before, both Light and his father jumped slightly from the sound.

"Ebony-chan is moving again?" L asked. Ebony grunted and made a shooing motion with her hand before rubbing her temples, trying to soothe a headache growing from more than her recent head bump.

* * *

Author's Note: Oh, Matsuda! You try way too hard and land in deep shit from doing so. Oh well. He makes things interesting, I guess. Please review for me.

-HaleyJo


	28. Kidnapped

Author's Note: Ok, this will begin to be explained now. I would say that I'm sorry for tormenting you all with the last two chapters, but I'm not. Enjoy!

* * *

**28. KIDNAPPED**

The new plan consisted of Matsuda convincing Yotsuba to use Misa in their newest commercial. It was a good plan since Misa was becoming more and more popular, especially since she was starring in that new movie. They had convinced the Yotsuba employees to accompany them back to Misa's place, which of course was the investigation team's headquarters, for a party with other models Misa knew. It would be great since this way they would be able to watch the party over the security cameras on Misa's floor.

Everything was relatively calm until the phone Ebony had kept in her hip holster – the completely unused emergency phone L had given her– began to ring. It scared the daylights out of her and made her fall out of her chair. She fumbled with the clasp for the holster and dug it out just before it stopped ringing.

"Watari?" Ebony cocked her head slightly. Her voice was still rather flat, but had a bit more life in it due to her surprise, "Misa wants to talk to me?...Ok, put her through."

L and the others watched her carefully, wondering why Misa had needed to get a hold of her.

"Misa-san?" Ebony remained on the floor, folding her legs as she listened, "No, I'm not mad anymore, there's nothing anyone can do…I swear I'm not mad…….You want me to _what_?!"

"What is she saying, Ebony-chan?" L asked.

Ebony then snapped her phone shut, an unusually rude gesture on her part, "She wanted me to act as one of the girls from the agency, which is completely out of the question."

She cut off any arguments by digging out a set of over-the-head headphones from her hip holster attached to a small black MP3 player. She started shuffling through songs before selecting one and hitting 'Play'. The volume was loud enough that the others just barely heard of it, making it clear that she couldn't hear them. So when her phone rang again, L picked it up and said Ebony refused to leave the control room, and that ended that. He wasn't complaining. Just the idea of Ebony up there acting like a model around a bunch of drunken old perverts who would try to make passes at her was enough to make his hands reflexively ball into angry fists.

While everyone else watched the monitors, Ebony kept her back to them. Actually, she sat under the counter, holding the earphones to her ears to block out as much sound as possible. L was happy that she was sitting closer to his chair than before, which meant she was calming down some.

After some time, not a minute after Matsuda faked his death by falling from Misa's balcony onto the mattress Mogi and Soichiro had stationed on the level below his, Ebony pulled off the headphones and stuck her music player back in her hip holster. After that, she proceeded to walk around the room, moving from seat to seat and constantly biting on her nails. She would start fidgeting whenever she sat down for longer than ten seconds, and her behavior didn't change when Light, L, Aiber, Wedy – who had 'called 911' – and Matsuda rejoined them.

"Where's Misa-Misa?" Matsuda asked, turning to Light since he was her 'boyfriend.'

"She called me on our way back here from driving around with Aiber," Light said. Aiber had been the one to act as Matsuda's dead body, and he and L had had to act as medics lifting 'Matsuda' into the ambulance, not something L had been very happy with at all, "She said she left something at the movie set and went back to get it."

"Oh," Matsuda nodded. Misa had forgotten things at the movie set several times before.

"Ebony-chan," L addressed her when she made another pass around the room. She'd been walking in circles for the last three minutes, "Would you care to share with us exactly why you are acting so strangely?"

Ebony just shook her head as she hopped up on the counter, her legs still twitching like crazy like she had Restless Leg Syndrome or something. Even though everyone was now out of danger, her unexplained unease was making everyone else on edge, wired.

That was why, when Light's cell phone rang, almost everyone jumped.

'_Here it comes…'_ Ebony closed her eyes, clenched her jaw.

"It's Misa," Light said as he read the caller ID. He flipped open the phone and held it to his ear, "Hello? Misa?"

"_Hello, Light-kun."_

Light froze, his red-brown eyes widening in shock. He then calmed down and narrowed his eyes, "Who is this? Why do you have Misa's phone?"

"What's going on, Light-kun?" L asked, though he already had a pretty good idea.

"_Who we are is of no concern to you,"_ The voice said. It was clearly male, _"Just keep in mind that as long as no one tries anything funny, your girlfriend will not be harmed."_

"Hand me the phone," Ebony stretched her hand out in Light's direction from her place upon the counter, bringing one knee up to rest her elbow upon it.

"Why-"

"Yagami Light," Ebony's voice dropped to probably one of the darkest voices anyone in the room had ever heard. She spoke slowly and calmly, "Give me the damn phone."

Knowing there was no room for argument, Light handed Ebony the phone. She used the hand that had its elbow propped on her knee, her head tilted back a bit and holding the phone similar to how L did. Probably a habit she'd picked up from him since he was the only one she ever saw use a phone due to L's refusal to let the rest of the team have their phones on. Her other hand acted to support her weight as she leaned back, her body the picture of ease, her face cold and dangerous and calculating.

"Hello, long time to hear," Ebony stated into the speaker of the phone, her voice still emotionless and dark as she looked up at the ceiling, "I know what you want and you'll get it, just set up a time and a place for the switch. However," Her eyes narrowed and her voice somehow became even colder, "If I find that Misa-san has been harmed in any way, any way at all, I will hunt you down and slit your throat. Do you understand?"

"_You never did like to waste time negotiating,"_ The voice on the other end of the phone chuckled, _"Don't worry. No one will harm a hair on Misa-Misa's pretty little head."_

"Give her the phone," Ebony demanded, "I want to confirm that for myself both now and when we make the trade. I'll know if you've hurt her, and if I find that you have, there will be no place you can go that can keep you safe from me."

She heard some shuffling and soon panicked breathing filled the phone.

"_E-"_

"No names, Misa-san," Ebony stopped her quickly, "Tell me, have they hurt you at all? Even in the slightest way?"

"_N-no, they haven't hurt me,"_ Misa was close to hysterics, and it sounded like she'd been crying, _"I-I bumped my head ag-gainst the doorway when th-they brought me here, b-but I'm ok. They-they've tied me up and b-blindfolded me, b-but they haven't hurt me."_

"Good. Tell him he can have the phone back."

"_She-she wants to talk to you," _More shuffling was heard before the previous voice returned, _"See? She's perfectly fine."_

"Yes," Ebony nodded, "Now, give me the time and location. There will be someone with me to take Misa-san back, but that's all. And I expect there to be only two of you at the most and you will not dare reach for your weapons to harm Misa-san or my companion. If I see anyone besides the two or see anyone reach for weaponry, everything is off and you'll be reduced to a hunted animal."

"_Down by the Yellow Box warehouse on Daikoku wharf,"_ The man replied, _"Tomorrow night at eleven sharp. Don't be late."_

"I won't be," Ebony then flipped the phone shut and handed it back to Light, "Don't worry. Misa-san will be fine. Ryuzaki," Ebony turned to him, "Would you let me borrow Watari tomorrow night? I can't drive and everyone else is too much of a cop to agree."

"What exactly will they not agree to?" L asked. Ebony took a deep breath and turned away from him.

"I am going to trade my freedom for Misa-san's," Ebony replied. Her voice still retained some of its earlier chill, but her tone was more casual now, like she was commenting on the weather.

"What?!" Soichiro gasped, "Ebony, you can't do that! How does that make anything any better?"

"Because I can survive there and Misa-san can't," Ebony stated firmly, "While Misa-san is there, she is in danger of being tortured, raped, terrorized, and who knows what else. While I'm there, I'm not in danger of any of these things."

"Ebony-chan," L called her attention, "Exactly how is it that you know these people?"

Ebony turned away, not wanting to explain. Luckily, she didn't have to.

"I'm surprised you don't know, L," Aiber said from where he leaned against the counter, "Guess she hid it pretty well, and no one would suspect it from looking at her."

"Get to the point, please, Aiber," L said, only the slightest strain in his voice. Now he understood what Ebony had meant when she'd said 'As long as nothing is said, nothing will happen.' She'd been threatening Aiber.

"Alright, alright," Aiber sighed. Then he turned gestured toward Ebony, "You're looking at the champion of underground bare-knuckled fighting for eight years running."

* * *

Author's Note: Cliffhanger! Cliffhanger! I love those things when I'm writing and hate them when I'm reading.

**RaveM:** Sorry the last chapter was short, but hopefully this makes up for it.

**Hao'sAnjul:** I'm glad you've enjoyed the last couple chapters. I enjoyed making Ebony hit Misa as well since she needs a good smack just like L and Light do. I just couldn't resist!

**The.Myth.Of.Normality:** I'm glad you have liked my story so far. Thank you so much for your compliments. I'm so happy you like Ebony too. Everyone seems to, which is just too awesome!

**Marisol Akyri:** I think her behaviors are explained some now. And she'd only ever seen Aiber before, not Wedy. You'll see.

**sun-sun kat:** No, Ebony doesn't have Shinigami eyes like BB.

**MrsGosh-Chan:** Ok, I updated. Does this make you happy now? I hope so. It made me happy!

Please review for me!

-HaleyJo


	29. I'm Sorry

Author's Note: This chapter made me a little sad, but its end is a bittersweet one. I can never smile whenever I read over this thing.

* * *

**29. I'M SORRY**

"Y-you can't be serious!" Light was the first to speak after a shocked silence, "She's not any bigger than Misa! How could she possibly be a bare-knuckled fighter?!"

"Like I said, nobody would suspect it from looking at her," Aiber shrugged, "But I've seen a few of her matches myself, and she's a vicious little thing."

"Why were you in illegal fighting, Ebony-chan?" L asked the quiet girl on the counter top.

"I didn't really have a choice," Ebony spat out, her voice suddenly harsh like it usually got when anyone was digging into her background, "My mother died during childbirth and my father was a drunken drug-trafficker. Any money he got from that went to his addictions. I had to fight to survive, otherwise I'd have never had any food or clothing that fit properly."

'_Ah. So that's why she hit Misa-san,'_ L suddenly understood, _'Her photo in the magazine gave her location away to her previous employers.'_

"Why didn't you tell us this yesterday?" Light demanded, "If you had, we could have kept Misa safe!"

"Pah!" Ebony scoffed, "She would have had to be in total lockdown for basically the rest of her life! That's not safety, it's isolation. It wouldn't really be any different than the captivity she's in now. This way, it's a short period of incarceration that will free her completely once tomorrow's over and she won't have to spend her life glancing over her shoulder every day, afraid of being jumped."

"You knew this was going to happen," L stated, his voice still calm as it always was, "You knew Misa-san would be kidnapped."

"Yes," Ebony sighed, "Of course she would. That picture made us look like good friends, and I do like her well enough, so they knew I would trade myself for her."

With that said, Ebony hopped off the counter and headed for the floating staircase, disappearing up it to go to her room. L wondered if maybe her financially challenged childhood was why she was so tiny. Perhaps a lack of proper nutrition had stunted her growth. The entire room was silent until Matsuda spoke up.

"So….what are we going to do now?"

L ignored him, his thoughts basically tripping over themselves in his mind. How had he missed something like this? He had known for a long time that Ebony's life had been rather harsh, thus leading to her survival instincts to be heightened almost to the point of paranoia and her odd reactions to certain things. Like when Aizawa had been yelling after her confinement ended, and the confinement had probably been a piece of cake before since she was so used to the dangerous grounds of illegal fighting.

He mentally cursed himself. He should have pushed her for answers as he would any other person, get her to tell him of her past. But his feelings for her had gotten in the way. Her comfort and happiness had ranked higher in importance than his own curiosity and safety precautions.

What was he going to do…?

-oooOooo-

L stared at her room door for several minutes, attempting to work up the courage to enter. It was the evening Ebony was to leave, and he had un-cuffed himself from Light after flipping up a steel bar from under the counter and clamping his cuff around it so he could come to talk to her alone. Light had protested, but when L simply said that he was going to try to talk to Ebony, Light had understood immediately. Ebony only seemed to open up to L or Watari, and she wouldn't if Light was with him, so he had no choice but to confront her alone.

Still, it was quite an intimidating thing all of a sudden. She had not come downstairs all that day, and only just now had L really mustered up the courage to speak with her. Worse still, it was very silent beyond her door, which surprised and worried him. The sound proofing in the building was good, but with Ebony's strength and temper, he still would have heard if she was tearing the room apart in her rage as he had assumed she would be.

Perhaps she was beyond rage and just numb now.

Carefully, L entered her quarters, looking around the sitting room and kitchen, only to find both empty. The punching bag L had gotten for her after her confinement – recalling her statement about staying fit – stood in the room that had originally been a small study, torn apart with fluff and water everywhere. But other than that, the floor belonging to her was unharmed. All the lights were off, the curtains pulled shut against the setting sun as if in a hopeless attempt to deny that the time had come.

That left only one room.

"Ebony-chan?" L entered her bedroom, seeing her flipping through her sketchbook. The lights were off in here too, but the curtains were open completely, allowing the fading rays of the sun to dance along the walls and other furnishings. The girl he sought sat at her desk, within earshot, but didn't acknowledge him, "Ebony-chan, please answer me."

"There's nothing you can do, L," He didn't correct her for not using his alias. It wasn't important right now, "This is just the life I have to lead. It was stupid of me to even try to leave the fighting in the first place."

"Ebony," L approached her, resting a hand against her shoulder. He threw away the friendly honorific, using only her name, "I can get you out of this, if you'll let me."

"L, please," Ebony stood and moved his hand from her shoulder. At the feel of her roughened fingertips, L realized that the marks he'd noticed before must have come from her many years of brutal fighting, "I already feel horrible as it is, so please…"

L jumped slightly when Ebony suddenly slid her arms around his trim waist, resting her head against his thin but strong chest. His arms moved to hold her of their own volition, his heart stuttering for the briefest moment as the small girl cuddled against him, her fingers burying themselves in the white fabric covering his slightly hunched back. Ebony never hugged anyone, not even out of simple friendship. She liked her space, much like he did, so this behavior from her was startling. He took his chance to hold her, though, something he'd been wanting to do for many months now.

"…don't try to talk me out of it," She finally finished. Her hands moved over his shirt, from his back and around his sides, up his chest to finally rest on his shoulders. Her face turned up to allow him to see it and it tore at his heart to see the hopelessness in her normally warm gaze, the miserable acceptance of her situation. Her fingers crept up his neck into his shaggy hair, her blunt nails scraping gently against the base of his skull.

She seemed to be working up her courage to do something, and though L had an idea of what she wanted, he was going to let her decide. His lips instinctively parted a bit when she suddenly stood on her toes and tilted her head.

For the first time in a long time, L allowed his eyes to shut as Ebony's full, warm mouth pressed gently against his, and he held her closer, not wanting this to end. He'd wanted her for a long time, but had kept his distance due to uncertainty about her feelings. They had always confused him, how her treatment of people seemed almost reversed of what he had come to expect from people in general.

But this kiss meant she felt something for him too.

His dark eyes fluttered open slightly when she pulled away and moved toward his ear. Her breath slightly ruffled the strands of his long hair that curtained his ear and gently tickled the sensitive skin.

"I'm sorry."

The words were more breathed than spoken as she pressed something into his hand. She then slipped past him to the door, leaving it open behind her.

L stared at the room, feeling as though the temperature had dropped to arctic levels. The thick covers of the bed were pulled to the corner farthest from the door and window, arranged in what looked like some form of nest.

'_She never slept in the bed because she never had one in her father's home.'_

Her sketchbook lay closed on the desk, a pencil and eraser nearby, an electrical pencil sharpener plugged into the wall. The top drawer was filled with colored pencils.

'_She drew as a peaceful talent to compensate for a violent one.'_

As the last rays of the sun disappeared beneath the jagged Tokyo skyline, L raised his hand and opened his fingers.

There, sitting on his large palm, was Ebony's bent dime earring.

* * *

Author's Note: See? Bittersweet ending, fully capable of stealing the happiness from anyone who reads it. Necessary, though.

**HahynGirl: **Is this a soon update? I think so. Thank you for your review. Made me smile!

**vala-anna:** Yay! New reviewer! Thank you so much! L's character is hard to grasp, but I find it rather easy. Probably because I'm such a weirdo myself. Also, L's habits have a way of rubbing off on you. He made me pick up my old habit of biting my nails!

Thank you all. Please review. This arc of the story doesn't sound far-fetched, does it?

-HaleyJo


	30. Trade

Author's Note: I update as I drink hot, freshly made, quite-possibly-over-sugared iced tea.

* * *

**30. TRADE**

Ebony leaned her head against the tinted window, watching the lights of the city zip by as the car moved. Both she and Watari were silent as he drove her to the Yellow Box warehouse. There was nothing that really needed to be said, or could be said. This was going to be her goodbye to her friends, her freedom….

…her love.

She shut her eyes as her heart threatened to stop in her chest. She had tried to avoid it, she really had, but all she had been able to do in the end was watch as she fell for L, the three greatest detectives in the world and possibly the most bizarre human being she'd ever met. Everything about him had entranced her right from the beginning even when she'd been initially pissed at him for attempting to pick her brain and then blackmailing her into this mess her life had become. She had always been drawn to things that were beautiful and unique, two words that summed up L perfectly.

With her eyes shut, she could see his image perfectly. His slouched posture, his ever present white cotton shirt and faded blue jeans, his oddly attractive sharp features, his shaggy, ink black hair, his ghostly pale skin…

'_His eyes aren't black…'_

The fact that his pupils were always so dilated made them look black, but they weren't. Gunmetal gray, his eyes were, but no one ever noticed because they turned away from his piercing gaze, instinctively aware that his eyes could strip anyone to their core the second he gained eye contact. Her thin fingers constricted around her necklace as her nerves recalled kissing him, getting close enough to see that thin ring of gray around his overly dilated pupils.

Part of her regretted kissing him, taunting them both with an affection they could now never share. The rest of her didn't regret it in the least bit, thankful that she had kissed him, even if it was only to be that once.

She came back to earth a little when she noticed the lights passing by were becoming fewer and farther between. The texture of the road beneath them changed, becoming rougher and less attended to. It was all too soon when Watari stopped the car and got out, opening her door for her.

Watari was dressed in the getup he wore whenever he represented L to the authorities of the world, keeping him sufficiently hidden from whoever was coming to make the trade. Ebony had requested he wear the outfit for his safety, which he agreed to without protest since he'd been intending to do that anyway. The license plates had also been removed from the car, an extra precaution against the vicious people they were meeting tonight. Watari even had a small handgun in his pocket, just in case. He rested a wide, gloved hand on Ebony's slim shoulder, trying to be of some comfort.

"Watari…" Ebony paused before moving to hug him like she had L, her heart suffering another blow as Watari's other hand came to rest on her head, "Thank you…for everything."

"You're welcome, Miss Ebony," Watari replied as she pulled away from him, weaving her fingers together over her abdomen and holding her head high, her face chiseled from stone.

They had come somewhat early, so there was still some time before the kidnappers would arrive. Ebony had said they should come early so they could scope out the place, make sure that there would be no unexpected surprises. Her rosy eyes were sharp, unbelievably sharp, so she would see it if there was anything wrong. So far nothing was to be seen and she didn't really expect there to be. While these people were the scum of the earth, they knew when it was in their best interests to play fair. Still, it never hurt to be cautious.

Everything was silent as the grave until a crunching sound reached their ears. Soon, they were momentarily blinded by a set of bright headlights, but neither dared to shut their eyes despite the sudden light breaking the darkness they'd been immersed in for the past fifteen minutes or so. Two car doors opened and some shifting and a slight whimpering was heard before two men walked out in front of the headlights, a smaller, blindfolded figure stumbling with them.

It was Misa.

"Send Misa-san over first," Ebony demanded, all of her normal politeness whisked from her vocabulary, "I will check for damage, and then we'll finish the trade."

"No problem, Angel," One man said before motioning to the one holding Misa. The man let Misa go and shoved her forward. The girl barely avoided falling.

"Misa-san," Ebony called as she stretched out her arms, "Follow my voice. Just keep walking till you feel my hands."

Misa did as she was told, blindly shuffling toward her friend's voice until she felt two hands place themselves gently on her shoulders. Knowing that none of her kidnappers would or could ever possess such gentle hands, Misa threw herself forward, sobbing on Ebony's shoulder.

"Misa-san, are you hurt?" Ebony held the other girl carefully as she looked her over for injuries, taking note of the slight bruise just by her hairline and the one of her left cheek. The one on her forehead must have been from when she'd bumped her head against a door and she recognized the one on her cheek from where she herself had hit the girl two days ago. She wore the same clothes she'd been wearing yesterday and her hands were bound behind her back.

Other than that, she was unharmed.

"Come on," Ebony led the trembling, weeping girl back to Watari's car, settling her in the front seat she'd previously occupied. After buckling the model in and shutting the car door, Ebony returned to the disguised man the car belonged to.

"Don't let her remove her blindfold until you get back," Ebony instructed him, purposefully avoiding use of his name, "and don't tell her what's happening until then either. Just let her know that everything's fine, ok?"

"Come on, Angel!" The harsh voice across from them pierced through the blackness, "We don't have all night!"

Ebony sighed heavily, every cell in her body rebelling against her choice. She turned to Watari one last time and gave him the best smile she could before she turned and walked across the distance separating her from the two men.

She wondered if this was what people in the old days had felt like when walking to the gallows.

When one man went to grab her shoulder, she snatched his wrist and squeezed just shy of the point where his bones would snap.

"Well, you haven't changed a bit, Angel!" The other man said, barking laughter as his companion massaged his throbbing wrist once the small girl had released him to step into the car on her own, "Still hate to be touched!"

Ebony didn't answer. She simply sat with her head held high and her hands folded neatly in her cross-legged lap. She looked nowhere but forward as the two men climbed into the vehicle, the man who'd laughed starting up the car.

She didn't look at Watari as the car pulled away. It just hurt too much.

And with a little pressure on the gas pedal and a turn of the wheel, Ebony was gone.

-oooOooo-

L simply stared at the bowl of melted ice cream sitting by his keyboard he hadn't even touched yet. Everyone was unusually silent, each of them finding the albino girl's departure hard to handle. The way she was almost always smiling, the way she said weird things without thinking, the way she taunted L and encouraged Matsuda…the building just seemed so empty now without her in it.

"What's going on?"

Everyone but L looked to see Misa entering the control room. She looked haggard and worn, but otherwise physically ok. She immediately went to Light, who allowed her to hug him for comfort.

"Where's Ebony-chan?" Misa asked, "She was in the car, I heard her, but she wasn't there when I could take off the blindfold."

No one answered for a while until L's voice broke the silence, sounding just as dangerous as Ebony's had during her negotiation with the kidnappers.

"Ebony has traded her freedom for yours due to your stupidity, Misa-san."

"Hey, you-" Misa then stopped, forgetting his insult over what he'd said, "W-wait…you mean Ebony-chan is…you mean she's…"

"Ebony is with those people," Light told her, "She was their real target all along. They used you to get to her."

"Wh….wh-what?" Misa's brown eyes grew huge and began forming tears which quickly began sliding down her face, "W-why did she do that?!"

"She didn't want you to get hurt," Soichiro answered, pressing his hand to his forehead, "She has a history with those people."

It took a while to get Misa to calm down enough to explain to her everything they knew, which wasn't much, and it took even longer to get her to calm down again after that enough so she could go to bed. After that, things were silent again in the control room. To distract themselves, they tried to work on the Kira case, tried to forget.

Light rested his head against his palm as he sat down at his laptop, his mind racing as he tried to both work on the Kira case and think of any way they could get Ebony back. He lifted his red-brown eyes to the dark haired man crouched in his seat beside him, sympathy in his gaze.

L hadn't moved at all since he'd returned from unsuccessfully offering Ebony his help. He hadn't even touched his ice cream, which was unheard of for the sugar obsessed detective. His shaggy hair curtained his eyes from the outside world, his long hands tightly gripping his knees.

"Don't worry about it, Ryuzaki," Light placed his hand on the man's bony shoulder, trying to offer some support, "We'll figure out a way to save her. Definitely."

L didn't answer. All he did was turn his head slightly away from him and hunch forward more, a childish way of telling Light to more or less 'fuck off'. Light removed his hand from his shoulder, seeing that he clearly wished to just be left alone right now.

When L's head moved, Light noticed something glint briefly in his hair. It had been very slight, almost unnoticeable, but he'd seen it. He focused his eyes, but L's hair had once again hidden whatever it was that he'd seen. Light wanted to ask what it was, but decided against it considering the situation. Maybe he would ask later.

L placed his thumb at his lips, gnawing on the nail as thoughts raced around inside his brain. As he picked his own brain for ideas and scenarios and possibilities, the hand near his mouth moved under his hair on the right side of his head. His unruly hair hid it, but his fingers were playing with a bent dime hanging from his earlobe on a thin chain.

* * *

Author's Note: So sad! But my tea makes me happy, and I know what's going to happen next, so I'm not going to start crying. Hope you all enjoyed this one.

**Marisol Akyri:** No. The kidnappers aren't Mello and Matt. They're not in the story here. These are just low-life thugs that I wish I could strangle right now. And yay! They acknowledge their feelings! Or at least Ebony finally does. Yay!

**HahynGirl:** Of course not a bittersweet ending to the story! Just the chapter! I'm not _that_ cruel. At least not today. (P.S. What does 'Hahyn' mean?)

**SugarLandBabyGirl:** I'm glad you liked this twist. I was wondering if I was doing it right since I know what's going to happen, but I have to keep it a secret from all of you. I had to reread my chapters several times from the viewpoint of a reader to see if I was doing everything alright. I'm glad to see I accomplished that much at least.

**MrsGosh-Chan:** I'm so happy you liked the kissing scene. I thought it would be cuter if Ebony kissed L first instead of the other way around like most other people seem to do. I'd had that planned for quite a while and I'm so happy to finally have been able to show you all a kissing scene after dancing around the romance and playing it down with comic relief for so long.

**vala-anna:** Not strange at all. My friend tells me I've started to use phones like L does after watching me talk to my mom when we were at the mall. I hope you enjoyed this new chapter. (P.S. I like your name. It makes me think of Vikings.)

Please review for me. This is the part of the story that makes me nervous to post since it's part of my own storyline rather than the original one.

-HaleyJo


	31. I Refuse to Cry

Author's Note: This chapter should make Ebony seem more like a fighter than baking cakes and teasing L would.

* * *

**31. I REFUSE TO CRY**

A sigh echoed throughout the room, reverberating off the creaky walls and things. Black cloth slipped away from white skin, skin that was never exposed more than what was absolutely necessary. New cloth then swiftly hid the smooth skin, sealing it from the elements. Small, slender fingers dragged along the back, closing the zipper that ran from the base of the spine to just under the hairline at the base of the skull. The long bench creaked under the new weight of a body sitting down, elbows propped up on a set of knees and a face buried in upturned palms.

'_I won't cry.'_

The face lifted, revealing large coral and crimson eyes. Ebony stared at nothing in particular as she sifted through her memories, being sure to reacquaint herself with any skills she may have allowed to fall slack during her time of…happiness…

The word caused more memories to slip unbidden into her mind. Memories of a kind old man who was always there to help and talk to, and even more memories of an exceedingly, almost unbelievably bizarre young man to whom the world looked to for answers, for justice. She missed him terribly.

But she had to do this. It had been the only way to get Misa out of here safely before she was permanently scarred, mentally and physically. These people showed no mercy and loved pretty young girls. Ebony was well aware that the only reason her body still worked perfectly fine was because the mafia considered her their best playing piece and thus didn't want her to be too damaged to continue fighting for them.

That was also the only reason why she was still a virgin, though that was more helped out by the fact that they were frightened of her, knew very well what she could do to them should she ever feel threatened. There was even proof since there had been an incident several years ago in which a man had tried to take advantage of her and ended up in the emergency room not an hour later and the O.R. not twenty minutes after that. That was probably the last time anyone had dared to touch her outside the ring.

Except for him.

'_I will _not_ cry!'_

Ebony hissed, a chilling sound that mimicked itself along the walls. She refused to cry, especially when the reason was over something that was her fault. She pressed her fists against her eyes and bit her lip, sitting in a position as though she was debating whether or not to curl into a fetal position and rock herself back and forth, something she had frequently found herself doing for as far back as she could recall.

A loud knock suddenly rattled the door, jolting her from a tiny portion of her seemingly endless misery. She knew the only reason the person – more than likely a perverted man – hadn't simply entered instead of knocking was because he knew of her reputation and didn't want to tempt fate and end up being unable to reproduce or enjoy the carnal pleasures of life.

"Hey, Angel!" Yes. Definitely a man, "We're waiting! Get your ass out of there already!"

Ebony didn't respond, merely stood from her place and approached the door. Opening said door revealed a tall man built like a brick wall with no hair on his shiny head, overall the big and stupid bodyguard type she'd seen too many times before. A lecherous look invaded his eyes and curled his mouth, but he made no moves. As was said, Ebony had a vicious reputation.

"Come on, then," She followed the man without a word, her eyes boring holes into his back and wishing her fists could do the same. The man led her to a ring that resembled a wrestling ring, only bigger. She listened to the man in the middle of the ring as he yelled into the mike he was holding before his face.

"THIS IS GOING TO BE THE MOST SPECTACULAR EVENT YOU HAVE EVER SEEN SINCE SHE LEFT THE RING A YEAR AGO!!" The man yelled with infectious enthusiasm. It infected everyone, save the young girl, "AND THOSE OF YOU WHO ARE NEW SHOULD CONSIDER YOURSELVES LUCKY TO SEE WHAT'S SOON TO COME!! PLEASE HELP ME IN WELCOMING OUR OWN ANGEL OF DEATH!!"

The din was deafening as people screamed their lungs out when Ebony entered the ring, her face blank and her eyes cold. Everything about her emanated fluid grace and raw power, a dangerous, easily deadly combination. Her form was covered by a pure white bodysuit, conforming to every dip and curve of her body, its similarity to her skin's coloring almost making it appear as though she were fighting without a stitch of clothing on. The man she was to fight was over six feet tall and made of solid muscle, staring her down with a look that was clearly saying,

'You're having me fight this little _girl_?'

He would soon regret that thought.

Ebony danced around the man at first, reading his movements and learning his face, gestures, anything that gave away his moves before he executed them. Then she began her attack, merciless in her onslaught.

She twisted her abnormally flexible body, slipping past his guard and landing calculated blows to wherever he showed a weakness. Unlike traditional fighting, Ebony had learned early on in her career as a bare knuckled fighter that fighting fair would only get you killed. As such, she felt no guilt in connecting her fists and feet to the man's face and groin, taking any advantage she could.

His large hands grasped her tiny wrists, applying pressure with the intention of breaking the bones in an iron grip. She twisted her torso and, using his hold as leverage, shot her heel under the man's chin, snapping his head back. The blow caused him to release her, her hands breaking her fall, and she then hooked her legs around his ankles and brought them out from under him, kicking him so that he landed on his stomach, forcing the air from his lungs.

Ebony was not as strong as this man. She was certainly not as big as this man. But her lack of mass did not mean lack of power and afforded her greater speed and more room to move. Her moves were calculated to use her opponent's strength against them, turn them into her own weapon.

Her fighting style wasn't any particular one. She had never taken any classes, never watched any specific style. She merely watched any fight she could see and copied the movements, molding them and altering them as she saw fit. It was clear that her fighting was a combination of many, but it worked just as well as any of them, if not more so since it meant her actions were less predictable, not so easily read.

A fist made contact with her face, sending her into the ropes around the ring. Blood dripped from her right nostril and her left eye began to blacken quickly. She took a few deep breaths before wiping the blood away, snarling at her opponent.

She quickly returned the favor of drawing blood, getting it splattered on her fists, face, and clothes. Soon the man was sprawled on the canvas, breathing with difficulty and unable to move.

The room erupted in exuberant screaming.

Ebony had never killed anyone. She came close many times, but she always knew when to call it quits, when to crush her opponent just enough so they wouldn't be able to continue the fight. She was certain she had signed many men's death sentences since some people were very, _very_ sore losers and did not tolerate it when their fighters failed, but never had a person died by her hands directly. She stared down at the broken fighter, blood dripping from her heavily bruised knuckles. She whispered to herself, the words going unheard.

"I refuse to cry."

* * *

Author's Note: So? You like? Let me know. I plan another update today.

**Lady of Dreams and Nightmares:** That answers your question. Ebony was called 'Angel' because those in the illegal fighting world only know her by 'Angel of Death'. A fitting enough name even thought she loathes it.

**Mel1983:** Thank you so much. Reviews from you mean the world to me. I liked how L is wearing Ebony's earring too. I thought it would be cute.

**HahynGirl:** I see. I've gotten interesting names too. My sister calls me Bill or Billie, and my name is Haley. If you want that story, I'll PM it to you.

**SugarLandBabyGirl:** You can read more really soon, like now. Yay!

-HaleyJo


	32. Split

Author's Note: Yay! Another chapter! I liked writing this one.

* * *

**32. SPLIT**

Watari contacted L through the laptop, telling him that Aiber was calling him.

"Put it through," L responded, his voice somehow more vapid than usual.

"_Ryuzaki, I was able to contact the eight indirectly and they are starting to trust me, though not completely,"_ Aiber said as a fancy letter 'A' appeared on the laptop screen, _"I'll be coming back to Japan tomorrow."_

"You sure work fast, Aiber."

"_At this rate they'll soon be asking me for my opinion and wanting to meet."_

"Aiber," L warned, "Showing yourself before them is very dangerous. Please be careful."

Aiber chuckled as he lifted a glass of wine_, "I understand. But you've saved me more than once, L. And anyway, with the evidence you have on me, I'm looking at a life behind bars. This is a lot more fun than that. One reason I can't quit being a con man is the thrill of it. Oh yeah," _He remembered,_ "I've gotten 5 million off them so far, but is it ok if I start thinking up a way to hand over a fake L and collect another 10 million?"_

"Alright. I'll think about it as well," L replied. Aiber heard some talking in the background before voicing something he'd had in his head since that trade the night before.

"_By the way, L,"_ Aiber said in an offhand tone, _"If you'd like, I could tell you where your girlfriend is."_

L drummed his fingers against his knee for a moment before responding, deciding to ignore Aiber's 'girlfriend' remark, "I see. Why wasn't this mentioned before?"

"_Just didn't think it was any of my business,"_ Aiber shrugged casually though L couldn't see him, _"Thinking of all the evidence you have stacked against me changed my mind."_

"Where is she, then?" L was losing patience with this man. If he didn't start talking soon, he might just throw him in jail for the hell of it. Normally, L would have been able to find Ebony on his own, but the girl had been smart and left the tracker cell phone he had given her for emergencies at the headquarters so she couldn't be followed by any of the task force, L included.

"_It's not concrete,"_ Aiber started, _"It's been a good three years or so since I was last there, so they may have moved their location, but I doubt it. None of those guys like moving around all that much unless it's absolutely necessary, like avoiding any police issued searches or raids if their location was compromised."_

"Yeah, we get that," Light cut in, "So where were they holding these fights when you last went there?"

"_They're really not that far from the Yellow Box warehouses,"_ Aiber responded, recalling the times he had conned several mafia members out of quite a lot of money during those fights. He had actually won a good deal of cash from betting on Ebony since she was undefeated, _"They use the older ones for the arenas and such, fixed them up a bit on the inside but left the outside decrepit so no one would think to look for anything in them."_

L was about to ask more when Watari told him that Wedy was trying to reach him. He decided to hold off on questioning Aiber for now and focus on the case.

"_Talk about disappointing,"_ Wedy's voice came through the laptop's speaker as a lower case 'w' appeared on the screen, _"The Yotsuba security system is nothing special at all. They just have a few security guards,"_ The task force could hear the sounds of the city and wind in the background, leading them to the conclusion that she was on a rooftop, _"As long as I know the guards' schedule, it's no problem to plant surveillance gear in the meeting room."_

"I'd like you to help the peeping tom Watari's hired and sneak into the meeting room late tomorrow night and install the cameras and bugs," L replied, getting an affirmative from Wedy.

Later that night, everyone gathered to watch the meeting except for Misa, who was up in her room. They listened carefully as the Yotsuba members discussed their wishes, not at all mourning for Arayoshi Hatori, who had wanted out of the meetings and thus killed by one of the remaining seven who currently possessed Kira's powers.

Unfortunately, part of L's focus was still on Ebony, wanting nothing more than to bring her back safely and never allow her out of his sight again. He needed to get more information from Aiber as quickly as possible since the longer Ebony stayed wherever she was, the worse condition she would be in once she returned.

L let out an unnoticeable sigh and picked up his small dish of Anmitsu and stuck his spoon in it to dip some out.

"What these seven say at their meetings and their actions until the people mentioned are killed…If we examine those closely, we'll definitely catch Kira," L stated. He wasn't surprised when suddenly Light and Soichiro voiced his name in protest at the same time, "What is it?" He glanced over his shoulder, "The two of you in unison…"

"I can't go along with your thinking!" Light exclaimed as his father agreed, "It's wrong!"

'_Here it comes,'_ L frowned as he stuffed Anmitsu into his mouth.

"You seem to be planning on capturing Kira by letting these seven continue to kill," Light said in anger, "But we can't do that!"

'_I knew it,'_ L almost seemed to be pouting.

"Yeah, these seven are clearly doing the killing. You should be able to prove it with Matsuda's testimony and this tape," Soichiro sided with his son, "Having them kill to strengthen the case is out of the question."

"I haven't said anything about having them kill, yet…" L lifted the small dish and tilted it toward him so he could drink the remains, "But this is a problem. I don't think it will be possible to arrest them unless one of the people they mention dies…But I don't even care about that. My problem is if we catch them now, everything will be ruined."

'_I need to come up with a plan…'_

"Ryuzaki, calm down and think this over. The people about to be killed now aren't criminals," Light tried to reason with the hunched over man, "We can't turn our backs to this. It's clear that these seven are behind the Yotsuba-related killings."

"…So you believe it's ok for criminals to die then, Yagami-kun?" L asked, taking this chance as he always did to pry something from Light's uncooperative brain.

"That's not what I mean! Don't change the subject!"

L frowned, feeling a headache growing rather quickly. There was just too much going on and his focus was split in half all the time now. He was starting to worry that his thinking wasn't very good at the moment when he couldn't afford to be anything less than perfect at the moment.

"_So how about Zenzai for this week and the E.L.F. people in three weeks?"_ One of the seven asked.

"_Ok."_

"_If we're gonna spread them out, then any day is fine."_

"If it's this week, then that means between tonight and tomorrow!" Soichiro gaped at the screen, "This is bad! Light, we know their cell phone numbers, correct?!"

"Yeah, and if we use the police system, we can record the call," Light said as he reached for the phone.

"The police are no good," L's statement stayed Light's hand, "They may reveal everything to the Yotsuba side. Let's assume that we cannot trust the police."

"Yeah…you're right…"

"Anyway, we have to call one of them and stop the killing," Soichiro insisted.

"Hold on a second," L said as he looked at Soichiro over his shoulder, "If you do that, they will be suspicious of Aiber when he contacts them in three days," L set down the bowl and picked up his cup of black tea, "And most importantly, it's highly likely that we will no longer be able to determine who Kira is…we've come this far, and we'd have to start all over again. To catch Kira, we need the proof…"

"Even so, human life is more important!" Light exclaimed, "What are you saying, Ryuzaki?!"

"And if Kira can kill just by willing it, then evidence is going to be very difficult to obtain," Soichiro added.

"If we take our time, we will definitely find the evidence," L explained, "Evidence definitely exists."

"How can you be so sure?" Soichiro demanded.

"Because…"

"It's because Kira killed Lind L. Tailor and the FBI."

"Matsuda?" Soichiro was taken aback.

"The fact that he killed Tailor – who went on TV and promised to capture Kira – and the FBI agents means that if they got close to him, they would find evidence and he would be captured. If there was no evidence, being investigated would be no threat. Killing them would be meaningless. This shows there definitely is evidence," Matsuda then grinned embarrassedly and scratched the back of his head, "That's what Aizawa said once, and I finally understand what he was getting at."

"Right…" Soichiro blinked and then shook his head as he got out his cell phone, "But right now we don't know whether one of these seven is Kira, or just connected to Kira. In order to save Mr. Zenzai, we'll have to reveal that we're on to them."

"Yeah…guess we have no choice," L pouted, "Of course saving lives is more important than catching Kira…"

Light thought for a few moments before a light clicked on behind his eyes, "Ryuzaki, if Kira is among these seven, am I correct in assuming that if I call one of them, the odds of hitting Kira is one in seven?"

"…I would think two out of seven at the most…"

"If we're planning to reveal everything to them anyway, might as well risk it on those odds. I'm going to borrow the 'L' name, Ryuzaki," This piqued L's interest, "Based on those conversations, the one who likely isn't Kira but has a good amount of influence is…"

Matsuda shouted out Ooi just as both L and Light said Namikawa, the gentleman with long black hair.

"If you're going to make a call, then use the phone here," L said, "It can't be traced."

Over the screen, they could hear it as Namikawa's cell phone rang. He pulled it from his pocket, slightly confused by the 'restricted number' words on the screen, before opening it and placing it at his ear.

"Is this Namikawa Reiji, the head of marketing for the Yotsuba group?" Light asked.

"_It is,"_ Namikawa responded.

"Listen closely without making a scene."

"_Huh? What?"_

"I'm L."

L had to admit he was amused by the shocked look on the man's face. He couldn't respond.

"We have cameras and bugs set up in the meeting room," Light explained, "We have audio and visual recordings of the recent meeting. The topic of the meeting was Mr. Hatori's death and who to kill next, correct?"

Namikawa seemed about to panic. They were lucky to have picked him because, had it been anyone else, they probably would have broken down since he knew he was as good as convicted of serial killings.

"If you're not Kira or someone who can speak directly to Kira, let's make a deal."

Namikawa's face relaxed slightly as he pondered the idea of a deal.

"I want you to delay the killing of the E.L.F. executives and Mr. Zenzai one month. I don't believe that would be difficult for you…"

"_Yes, I see…"_ Namikawa finally responded now that his throat wasn't so constricted by shock and fear, _"And then?"_

"If you do that and agree to cooperate with us in the future…you…" Light amended his statement, "No, all of you who are not Kira, will not be charged with any crime."

"_Yeah, ok,"_ The wheels in Namikawa's brain were clearly spinning as he thought over this deal, clearly weighing his fear of Kira against his fear of possibly the death penalty. His ability to remain so calm was definitely admirable.

"Revealing this conversation to the others will cause panic," Light said, trying to keep everything running smoothly just as Namikawa was, "There's no advantage for you. You'll all be captured. Plus, my goal is confrontation with Kira. Listen…if L wins, you all walk free. If Kira wins, you guys continue with your great life."

L had to hand it to him. Showing that the situation was pretty much win-win for Namikawa – given that he wasn't Kira – was a good way to get him on their side. The Yagami boy truly was brilliant whether he was on his side or Kira's.

"Many things are probably flying through your head right now, but you should just go along with both sides and stay on the sidelines. You lose nothing regardless of who wins this. The only way you lose is if you're captured right now. Later."

Light hung up as they all watched to see what Namikawa would do. Things couldn't have gone any more perfectly. Namikawa played off the call as one of his men screwing up and suggested holding off the killings for a month to give Coil time to locate L, cool as a cucumber. Light had hit gold by choosing Namikawa.

"At this rate, if I die, you could probably become the successor to the L name, Yagami-kun," L said around his thumb.

"Don't say that. We need to figure out who Kira is, and obtain evidence within a month," Light said absently as he continued to watch the screen, "The hard part is just beginning."

"Yes…But the one to notice Yotsuba first was also you, Yagami-kun," L stated as he lifted up a sheet of paper with the Yotsuba stocks on it, "One could say you're more capable than I am. You might be able to do it, Yagami-kun…"

"To be your successor as L…?"

"No, that wasn't what I was thinking…But, if I die, would you take over for me?"

'_If you are Kira and merely acting right now, you'll definitely say you will,'_ L glanced at Light from the corner of his eye.

"What are you talking about, Ryuzaki? As long as we have this we die together, right?" Light jingled the chain. Then realization came over his eyes, "Oh, I get it…Sorry Ryuzaki, but I'm going to tell everyone what you're thinking."

L was afraid he'd do that.

"If I am Kira, Ryuzaki is assuming one of two possibilities. First, that I'm putting on a big act and faking that I'm not Kira. Or that Kira's power has been passed to someone else and I have no memory that I _was_ Kira," Light lifted his left wrist around which the cuff was locked, "If it's the former and I'm acting, then these handcuffs will never come off. I cannot be allowed to be free again. Actually, he probably won't remove the handcuffs for the other theory either…Ryuzaki thinks I'm Kira, and even if the power has been passed to someone else, he assumed that I have set things up in a way that the power will eventually return to me. So I wasn't controlled, it was all a plan to pass the power to someone else and gain it back when I'm no longer a suspect."

'_Amazing…'_ L admitted, _'To know what I'm thinking that accurately…'_

"'Yagami Light could become Kira while also being L'," Light voiced the simplified version of the theory, "That's what Ryuzaki is thinking."

"Correct," L said simply.

"To gain the position of L and be able to freely control the police around the world while being Kira behind the scene. That would be the ultimate position. And you're saying I could do it. No," Light amended himself, "that I'm _trying_ to do it."

"Yes…"

"But what about now?" Light demanded, "You should at least realize that I'm not acting."

"If you're planning on taking over the work of L," L replied as he dragged his finger around the rim of his cup that held coffee this time, "then you wouldn't be revealing it in front of everyone…Is that what you're implying?"

"Yeah, and if Ryuzaki…I mean, if L were to die while I continued to live and Kira suddenly appeared again, you'd just need to have Watari or a third party determine that I was Kira. And for the other possibility," Light hated voicing L's suspicions. They made him sick, "Say that it's true that I sent the power to someone else and plan to have it return in the future. If that's the case, the assumption is that I've lost my memories of being Kira, correct?"

"Yes, that's the only way it would make sense."

Light suddenly placed his hand on L's shoulder and spun him around to face him. L tensed under the contact. No one had touched him since Light's failed attempt to help his spirits after Ebony had traded herself away like some material object.

"Ryuzaki, if I capture the current Kira…After that, do you really think I would become Kira...become a murderer…? Do I really look like that kind of person?"

L stared at the young man for a moment, digging through his soul. The soul of someone who only needed the power for evil to take root within his heart, pure but so easily tainted.

"That's what I think, and that's how you look."

Light shut his eyes for a moment.

Each man suddenly stuck out at the same time, Light's fist hitting L square in the face while L's right foot connected harshly with Light's right cheekbone.

"Alright! Once is enough!" Matsuda came between them with his arms spread to discourage any more fighting, "Let's just end this at a draw."

"Y-yeah…Anyway, let's just capture the Kira that's in front of our eyes," Light said as he turned away and rubbed his throbbing cheek, "You can't complain as long as I have the cuffs on."

"Yes, we only have one month," L turned around as well, licking the corner of his mouth to soothe the ache. He couldn't soothe the one in his heart, though. If Ebony had been here, she surely would have been laughing at them after breaking them up, a pretty smile painting her gentle face…

Soon afterward, L decided to work on the case his way while the others worked on it their way. Light would have worked with his father if not for the chain, so he had no choice but to work near L despite his misgivings about L's tactics. L ended up dragging Light upstairs to Misa so as to manipulate her onto his side. Her cooperation would prove most beneficial to his plan. However, he hadn't planned for Misa to kiss him on the cheek after she believed he understood her feelings for Light and it made him quite uncomfortable. He'd had to consciously keep himself from shoving her away. He was still more than angry at her for that trade and the anger wasn't about to leave any time soon.

"How about being friends, Ryuzaki?" Misa offered.

"That is not possible, Misa-san" L said, feeling no guilt for the shocked and hurt look on the model's face, "I am still very angry with you for what happened to Ebony-chan, therefore I cannot consider you a friend. Perhaps when she is returned, we can be friends, but not before."

"Oh! So that's how you understand Misa's feelings," Misa grinned happily and bounced up and down as she clapped her hands together excitedly, "Ryuzaki-san is in love with Ebony-chan!"

"Think what you will, Misa-san."

"It's why you're wearing her earring, isn't it? Well, I consider you my friend, and Misa never betrays her friends. Leave it to me," She grinned proudly, "With the three of us working together, Kira is in big trouble!"

"Well, actually," L leaned closer to her as though to share a secret, "Yagami-kun disagrees with my investigation methods and will be working with his father, so it will be just the two of us…"

"Huh? What the…?!"

"…This is a dirty trick, Ryuzaki," Light said, now seeing L's true motives, "Now it's like I _have_ to join you guys…"

"No, of course not," L replied as he stuck his thumb between his teeth, playing his favorite 'ignorant' card.

"What are you talking about? Of course you're with us, Light!"

"No, listen," Light said, his voice as stern as it could get without sounding frightening since he was never comfortable with using fear as a motivator, "I'm against doing things like this. It puts Misa in too much danger."

"Light, thanks for worrying about me, but let me do it. I want to be able to help you. I want to be of use to you and be loved by you more. Plus…" Misa clasped her hands before her and sighed, every bit the hopeless romantic, "I would gladly die for you."

'_Like how Ebony might die for you,'_ L thought bitterly. He hated how he hadn't been able to keep Ebony safe. He had tried to be angry with the sugar haired girl for basically allowing her former employers to take her back, but he just couldn't do it. He understood her reasoning, but he also believed that he could have found her a way out of it if she'd just told him sooner, back when she'd hit Misa for her photo being published.

He still needed to talk to Aiber, learn more about these people who held Ebony in their filthy grasp. But finding the time to do so would be even harder now that the team had split.

* * *

Author's Note: Nothing really to say. Reviews, please?

-HaleyJo


	33. Planning

Author's Note: My apologies to those of you who wanted Ebony in this chapter, but she's not until the next one. I'm sure you'll all still like this one, though. I do.

* * *

**33. PLANNING**

Misa leaned her hands against the bathroom counter, taking a calming breath. Going through that interview with the Yotsuba members was a lot of hard work, even with Aiber there to control the interview as 'Coil'. But she had to do this in order to help Light and L capture Kira. It was time for her to do something to help the investigation, especially considering what her actions had cost Ebony…

Before Misa could begin to hate herself again, she felt what seemed like paper tap just behind her pinky finger.

Her scream lasted only a second before a large, webbed hand covered her mouth.

-oooOooo-

L flipped through Ebony's sketchbook as he sat before his laptop, a cup of coffee held delicately in his other hand. He had gone through her drawings multiple times, and the girl clearly had a lot of talent. There were a myriad of people in the black book, including all of the task force members and himself. That was probably why she'd left it behind, so that the mafia wouldn't be able to track down anyone else she knew. There were also a couple of very bizarre-looking creatures on a couple of pages, one with a distorted, spiky-toothed grin and the other seeming to be made entirely of bones. He recalled Ebony telling him once 'I draw what I see', but this made no sense. Perhaps she meant she also drew what she saw in her mind? Maybe.

"I hope Misa-Misa is ok," Matsuda had been pacing around for several minutes now and it was starting to get on his nerves, "Shouldn't we have attached listening devices to the room or to Misa-Misa herself?"

"We didn't know which room the interview would take place in and if we attached it to Misa-san, then she would have been in greater danger," L spoke just to get the other man to shut up, "This is what my team is doing, so you guys don't have to worry about it."

"Yeah, come help me, Matsuda," Soichiro spoke up from his place at one of the couches by the stairs.

"By the way," L suddenly stated, "I believe Ebony-chan will be returning soon."

"What?" Light looked to L, snapping out of his thoughts of how the original Kira's ideals and his own were frighteningly similar. He was glad for the distraction, "What do you mean?"

"Well, Ebony-chan's sketchbook will help a lot," L flipped a few pages, "Aiber informed me that several of the people whose images are in here are Ebony-chan's former bosses, major heads in the mafia in charge of these illegal fights. I also had him scope out the area again, and it seems that the fights are still being held in their normal location. While doing his job as Coil, Aiber watched the place and it seems that Ebony has not once left the building, which means she is obviously prohibited from doing so."

"I see what you mean," Light said as Matsuda and Soichiro came over to listen and help if possible, "She's probably not under lock and key though since they know she won't leave and risk Misa's safety like that."

"Correct, Yagami-kun," L stated, "That is what I believe also. I had Mogi-san infiltrate with a small camera in a hat he was wearing, just after Hatori-san's death. Using that, I have determined where Ebony-chan normally is between fights and where her employers usually are. Infiltration shouldn't be a problem, and once that is accomplished, we will apprehend the mafia bosses and take down the fighting from the inside out."

L said he would elaborate on the plan later once Misa and Mogi returned after her interview. Mogi would be needed to help in the infiltration. He did explain the plan more to Light, however, while Matsuda and Soichiro went back to their own investigation. Soichiro was intending on appearing on TV to announce everything they knew about Yotsuba, but L managed to convince him to wait a month until going through with such a drastic action, especially now since they had two motives. One: Kira, two: Ebony.

Now all they had to do was wait for Misa and Mogi.

-oooOooo-

"Man, I'm exhausted!"

"Ryuzaki, Yotsuba has decided to go with Misa for their advertisement."

L didn't even turn around as Misa and Mogi entered the building, not something out of his character to do. He heard Matsuda ask how everything went only for Misa to say that she couldn't tell him since there were two different teams. Once Matsuda said they'd rejoined forces, Misa told him how she'd given her cell number and e-mail address to the Yotsuba members and how three had already contacted her privately. She was all happy until L told her the plan to investigate each of the Yotsuba members was cancelled.

"What?! After all this?! Don't be ridiculous!" Misa exclaimed as she grabbed L's head.

"I-it's not my choice!" L was very thankful when Light pulled Misa away. He still couldn't stand the touch of anyone, especially Misa at the moment. When Light told Misa to deny being interrogated by L, however, she agreed to do as he said right on the spot instead of protesting like she normally would have. That immediately caught L's attention. Misa, however dim she may be at times, was incredibly headstrong, hell-bent on getting her own way. Having her stop something after putting in so much effort was not something her personality would allow her to tolerate.

L was amused, however, by Misa's next words as she poked her head back in the room.

"Light, want to come to bed with me?"

"What are you talking about, Misa…?" L thought that question was rather funny. Light wasn't an idiot, so he surely knew exactly what Misa was talking about. It was interesting. He hadn't pegged Light as the kind of person to be shy of relationships. Well, the Kira-Light probably wouldn't be. This was just Light, so maybe he was. Who knows?

"I know, we're saving that until after you catch Kira," Misa giggled as she turned to leave for her room to get some well-earned rest, "Don't be so shy, Light."

"Don't be so shy, Light-kun," L taunted him as well.

"I'm not."

"Why are you answering so seriously, Light-kun?"

"Ryuzaki, cut it out," Light frowned, "Shouldn't we be explaining your plan to get Ebony back?"

"We're getting Ebony-chan back?!" Misa immediately bounded back into the room, hope evident all over her face, "Really?!"

"Yes," L replied, agreeing with Light. For now, Ebony's safe return was their top priority. He had everyone gather around and began to explain his plan, carefully outlining each and every detail so that even Matsuda or Misa couldn't screw it up.

Misa, on the other hand, was also going over what that frightening Shinigami had told her back in the restroom at Yotsuba. Light was Kira, even though he didn't know it right now, and Misa had been the second Kira who had sent messages to the Sakura TV station. Light apparently had some big plan going on to kill L so that he could be free to judge criminals and make the world inhabited by only good, kind people.

Still, it was difficult to just sit here and do nothing now that she knew who the current Kira was: that Higuchi pervert who kept asking her out even though she never responded to his requests. He was really a disgusting man and Misa felt sorry for Rem since the Shinigami woman had to follow him around all the time since he owned her Death Note.

However, she had a plan to get Higuchi to confess to acting as Kira. If she could do that, then they could arrest him and get the Death Note back to Light so he could regain his memories. Then he could properly tell her what to do to be of use to him, which is what she wanted more than anything in the world.

Even though she couldn't go, Misa had no complaints. She never wanted to go to that place ever again. She hadn't been able to see anything due to the blindfold, but just the sounds and smells were enough to make her retch just by thinking of them.

"We will return soon," L said as he stood and unlocked the cuff binding his wrist. Light wasn't coming either since Soichiro had denied him the chance and refused to change his mind, which was just fine with him. The cameras in the building were all on, so he would be able to catch it if Light did anything suspicious while they were gone. Misa had to stay in the control room with Light, so she went to retrieve her laptop from her floor and immediately hopped online to check her email.

"You guys better be careful," Wedy said as they approached the door, "These are the kind of guys that shoot first and ask questions after you're already buried."

"We will," Soichiro nodded to the con artist and turned to Mogi, Matsuda, Aiber, and L, "Come on. Let's get this over with quickly."

* * *

Author's Note: How cool is this? They're finally going to get her back! And L sure saw some interesting things in Ebony's sketchbook, didn't he? Oh, the suspense!

**MythCreatorWriter:** Yes, I can say inferiority complex, actually. And no worries. I'm a sucker for happy endings, as you well know. And yeah, L would have to have a piercing in order to wear Ebony's earring. I don't know if he really does in the manga since we never see his ears, but he does here.

**SugarLandBabyGirl: **Yeah, Ebony is a vicious thing, isn't she? And of course L is bitter. Misa's stupidity cost Ebony her freedom. I'd be bitter toward her too if I were him. Of course, I probably would have hit her like Ebony did, but L probably just can't find an excuse to do so. Poor guy!

**Marisol Akyri: **Yeah, I think L's blown a couple circuits in his brain from worrying about two major things at once. I have a tendency to torture my characters like this, but I also usually reward them if they survive. Like a soldier getting a purple heart or something.

**RaveM:** That's a good question. I've thought about that myself, but haven't had any opportunities to see which one would win. I think it would be L, though, since the spar would be friendly and L is a guy. Guy's have more upper body strength than girls. But Ebony's also practically a contortionist, so maybe she would win? Who knows? I'll try to get a scene like that in here, though. It would be interesting, not to mention probably highly amusing.

**Hao'sAnjul:** Yeah, I've been updating a lot, but don't you love me for it? Good call about her being involved in something illegal even though she hadn't really had a choice. It's a good contrast to L, I think, the poor love-sick guy.

Abominable Annie: I updated soon. Yay!

**vala-anna:** Elvish, you say? Interesting. What does it mean? I also wish I had Ebony's fighting skills, but I'm taking Tae-Kwon-Do right now, so maybe I will be one day. Ha! A character I made up is my idol! How funny! And yeah, I guess L has a piercing in his ear. My brother has one from when he was super little, he just never warmed up to the idea of wearing an earring. Too much trouble, I think. And yeah, I am on summer vacation right now, but I'm also just a happy writer. Wow. When I say it that way it sounds like I'm high or something. How funny!

**Lady of Dreams and Nightmares:** Did I sound rude before when I answered your question? I'm sorry if I did, it wasn't my intention to. Sorry.

Please review for me!

-HaleyJo


	34. Convincing

Author's Note: This should make up for anyone who was disappointed with the last chapter

* * *

**34. CONVINCING**

Ebony wasn't sure how much more she could take. She had been fighting almost constantly for the past fifteen days, and she was certain that they were pushing her to her limits on purpose, a type of punishment for her leaving the illegal fighting world, she was sure. They knew she wouldn't say a word about it, she never did.

It was more than simple obedience now unlike before, though. She had to fight so that Misa could stay safe and free. The blonde model could never have survived in a place like this. Ebony knew this terrain far better than she would have liked, knew the people far better than anyone ever should. Misa wouldn't have survived five minutes had she not agreed to the trade. The only reason she had survived before was because they hadn't been after Misa; they'd been after Ebony, their Angel of Death.

Oh, how she _loathed_ that name! It was the worst thing anyone could ever call her since she'd gained the name seven years ago. She'd rather be called a cold-hearted, lying, whoring bitch from Hell than her fighting name.

Dodging a violent punch knocked her out of her bitter thoughts. She turned her focus back on the person she was fighting, another man far taller and bigger than herself. She spat out a bit of blood from biting her tongue due to a blow to the jaw earlier and buried her heel in the man's abdomen, feeling the breastbone crack under her foot. He howled in pain and doubled over, his arms around his aching midsection. Ebony used the moment to send a roundhouse kick to the side of his head, rendering him unconscious. She then backed off to her corner, her legs trembling under her and her breath coming out in gasping pants. The man was carried off the stage and the announcer came up.

Ebony was more than a little relieved when the announcer said they were taking a short break. She quickly descended from the arena and all but fled to her 'changing room,' desperate for some quiet. She collapsed on the bench, burying her face in her hands. After allowing herself to catch her breath, she stripped off her white bodysuit, hanging it on the door of the rickety locker she used for her other clothes. Taking out a black bag from the locker, she started tending to her wounds, rubbing them with alcohol to prevent infection and wrapping up a few of the worse ones. Her nose wrinkled slightly at the sharp scent of the rubbing alcohol, but she'd smelled far worse.

-oooOooo-

Due to the clothing, no one noticed, not that anyone would take the time to notice. There were hundreds of people packed into the small place, after all. Who would notice just one more individual? No one. And due to the nonexistent security, things would soon be set in motion.

Fingers curled into fists hidden in a pair of pockets as sneaker-clad feet moved casually across the space as quickly as they could through the many bodies without seeming suspicious. After two weeks of careful planning and organizing, scoping out the compound and all of its exits and hiding spots and escape routs, it could finally begin. The only missing piece was the prize's knowledge, which they had assumed would be the tricky part. It really wasn't. No one was paying any attention at all and there were no guards around the goal. Probably because they knew she wouldn't leave and risk Amane Misa's safety.

All in all, it was a simple enough task for the unobtrusive intruder to slip down the corridor he wanted, his footsteps beginning to echo along the stone walls lined with dripping metal pipes as the sounds of the crowd started fading away behind him. He slightly shifted his gait to become lighter, stealthier, the echoing all but halting entirely. He could hear his heart pounding in his ears and almost expected to hear it echoing around him to take the place of the sound of his feet.

Very carefully, he reached out a hand for the doorknob and was somehow able to open the door without any noise. Shutting it silently behind him, his breath caught in his throat no matter how much he thought he'd been prepared.

Ebony was sitting some distance away on a rickety bench, closing the zipper on her back, thus hiding the dark bruises marring the skin there. Her hair fell down her back like always, but not in its usual twists and turns. Her hair was limp, probably from lack of care. Her head was being supported by her small hands. It was plain to see that she was miserable.

Suddenly, she jumped up and whirled around, facing him in an offensive stance. He winced at the sight of her blackened left eye and slightly bleeding lower lip.

"Who are you?!" She demanded harshly, "How did you get in here?! Answer me!"

Ebony narrowed her eyes at the man that had somehow made it into her 'dressing room' without her knowledge. He wore a black leather coat and a wide-brimmed hat pulled down low to hide his face. His clothing seemed to almost hang from his frame, obviously too big for him. She was about to again demand to know why he was in here on the threat of violence if he refused to answer her when the figure sighed and finally spoke.

"Not exactly the friendliest greeting I've ever received, Ebony."

Her breath left her lungs in a rush, her heart pounding as she recognized that soft, deep voice she'd grown to know anywhere in the past several months, the voice that was usually the first thing she heard when she woke up and the last thing she heard before she went to sleep. She recognized the faintly teasing lilt that just barely laced the voice, gently reaching toward her and flitting into her ears. Most of all, she recalled hearing almost the same exact words as she had the night she was blackmailed into the Kira case.

"L?!"

He lifted his head enough for her to see his face and his stubbornly messy hair, something she'd missed since many people around here had messy hair. Those impossibly wide dark eyes fixed on her, that adorably innocent grin she loved curling his lips. A single long, pale finger lifted in front of those lips in a shushing motion.

"Not so loud, Ebony. L must keep his identity a secret, you know."

Ebony couldn't speak at all as he walked over to her, the finger he'd used to shush her reaching out to twine a lock of her hair about the digit.

"Are you _crazy_?!" She finally spluttered out, dread creeping down her spine as she suddenly registered the kind of situation he had just put himself in, "Do you realize how much danger you're in?! Do you _want_ to die?! What the hell are you _doing_ here?!"

"In order: yes, it is quite probable that I am not sane; yes, I realize the level of danger I have placed myself and others in; no, I don't particularly want to die; and I've come to get you," L continued grinning at her while he spoke, too thrilled at seeing her again to rein it in, "Did I get them all and answer them to your satisfaction?"

Ebony gaped at him like a fish out of water for a moment before her eyes narrowed and she bared her teeth. She grasped his hand and shoved it away, grabbing his shoulders next in order to spin him around.

"Get _out_ of here!" She commanded, shoving him toward the doorway, "Before anyone sees you!"

"No," L stood firmly and didn't budge no matter how hard Ebony pushed against his back to try to make him move, "Evidently, you missed my last answer. I have come here to get you, and I wasn't planning on leaving without you."

"Just stop it!" Ebony hissed, "You have to leave now before someone comes and finds you!"

"No," L turned and grasped her shoulders firmly, not relenting even as she resorted to pounding her tiny fists against his chest and trying to twist out of his grip. He turned slightly and stepped forward, effectively pinning Ebony to the wall, "I was not planning on leaving this 'building' without you and it is still my intention to refuse to do so."

"Just _stop it_," Ebony continued trying to twist away, her attempts made even more useless due to her pinned position, "Stop this! You think you can save me, but I'm stuck here and I've accepted it! You need to accept it too! Stop thinking you can save me, because you_ can't_! So just go back to the Kira investigation and do your damn job!"

"I am doing my job," L replied, growing angry with her protests. He had known she would try to refuse his aid, but it still upset him, "I accepted the title of 'L' in order to enforce some semblance of justice in this world, and your situation is anything but just! Let me help you!"

"No," Ebony's squirming got worse when L's strong arms wound about her tightly, dragging her into a hug she could not break free of, and he buried his face in the side of her neck, "L, I'm stuck here! Deal with it! You can't-"

Enough was enough. If he couldn't get her to see reason, he would _make_ her see reason.

Those were his thoughts, anyway, when L grabbed a hold of her head carefully but firmly and brought his mouth down on hers, disrupting whatever sentence she'd been about to form. She tried to turn her head since the wall prevented her from moving back, but he didn't let her, weaving his fingers through her sugar hair to get a better grip, though it didn't hurt her at all. Her struggling grew less and less frantic after a short moment, her form stilling in his arms and her lips beginning to move shyly against his, then more enthusiastically as his excitement proved contagious.

L relaxed as he registered her acceptance, moving his arms to wrap around her tightly. Ebony pressed herself against him eagerly, suddenly desperate to feel his body against every line of hers. She wove her callused fingers through his unruly hair, pulling him as close as she possibly could. She felt something warm and moist flick her lips, easily coaxing them apart and darting past them. Her vocal chords betrayed her as they let forth a moan, but she refused to be embarrassed by it. Instead she battled with his tongue, only to submit when L clearly won the fight for dominance. His tongue gently caressed hers as he pressed her tighter against the wall, causing an all-consuming heart to swamp her whole body. This was nothing like the small kiss she'd given him before she left. It deprived them of consciousness of everything around them.

But now wasn't the time or place to let their desires reign freely. A sudden banging on the door reminded them clearly where they were. Ebony finally turned her head for air, though their faces remained close. Her nose nudged against his, her pants flitting over his lips. She took a second to steady her breathing before answering the call, difficult to do when she couldn't tell where she ended and L began.

"Get out here, Angel!" Came the voice of a burly man, "Ya' got more fights to fight!"

"Back off!" Ebony yelled back, her voice clearly threatening, "I have a few minutes left!"

The man barked something back, something about her hurrying up, but she wasn't listening. Ebony had turned her focus back to L, his dark eyes stealing away the breath she'd just regained after that passionate kiss.

"I don't see any way out," Ebony breathed, snaking her arms around him and cuddling against him. She didn't protest when he kissed her a few times, nothing more than swift, light kisses to prolong the contact and intimacy.

"Ah, but I am the cunning detective, if you recall," L kissed her again, grinning down at her as his voice dropped in pitch to a lover's murmur, "Do you trust me?"

"That's a dumb question."

"That's not an answer."

"Yes," Ebony nodded, moving up on her bare tiptoes to give her that extra few inches she needed to reach his soft lips, "I trust you. What's your plan?"

L's smile grew wider as he leaned down to whisper in her ear, the hair on his nape standing up as Ebony's fingers idly caressed his curved spine.

* * *

Author's Note: So? Did you all enjoy it? I sure hope so since Ebony's back now. Yay Ebony!

**OoOlady heatherOoO:** I'm so happy you like my OC. If you want more good LxOC stories, go to Mel1983's page. She has awesome LxOC stories and even a MelloxOC one. You'd love her work.

**SomeOtherPerson:** Thank you so much for your kind review. And don't worry. I don't like being depressed.

**vala-anna: **You'll just have to wait and see. I don't give away stuff that easily.

**IvoryCrayon:** I can't tell you. That would ruin the story! But they're reunited right now. Is that good for now?

**The.Myth.Of.Normality:** I update so fast because I didn't start posting my story till I was on the fortieth chapter. I'm glad you liked their first kiss. I think this one was better, though.

**RaveM:** Yes, they're together again. Yay!

**MythCreatorWriter:** I did find a loophole!

**sun-sun kat:** Yeah. They're Shinigami. But what was the '?' review?

**Mel1983:** I'm glad you like how L is wearing her earring. I thought it was just too cute not to put in. Oh, and please don't soil yourself. That doesn't sound good at all.

Please review for me!

-HaleyJo


	35. Move In

Author's Note: Yay! New chapter! I would have updated earlier, but fanfiction had some problem with it. Anywho, please enjoy!

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**35. MOVE IN**

Ebony twisted one of her limp curls around her fingers, following another brick wall man down the corridor. She had never been so nervous in her life, not once. She momentarily panicked when her stomach churned, briefly threatening to rid itself of what she'd managed to convince herself to eat earlier for her dinner. It calmed, however, relieving her stress fractionally. She dropped her hands to her sides, trying to maintain some level of calm. If she didn't, she would lose this one chance she had to finally be free. Completely free…

She almost started when the announcer screamed into the mike, but didn't, since that would arouse suspicion. She kept her stony expression in place with practiced ease as she climbed into the ring, ignoring the aching in her abused body and slightly adjusting the bandages L had helped her to retie around her knuckles. She had some on her ankles and the arches of her feet too for padding and support, but that was her only protection. Still, all she had to do was drag this thing out for as long as possible, which couldn't be too hard. She wasn't the champion of underground fighting for nothing.

'_Oh…shit.'_

Her jaw tightened as her eyes took in the form of hopefully the last fighter she was to be facing tonight. Though she didn't know his name, she recognized him as a man she'd faced not too long after she'd turned twelve. Due to a sudden trauma she'd suffered that year, her survival instincts had been kicked up into high gear. He had previously been the champion of the bare-knuckled fighting world until she'd kicked him hard enough for him to go sailing out of the ring, giving him a broken leg and a nasty concussion that had put him out of commission for a while as well as humiliated him. The whole thing hadn't really sat well with him.

In short, he was still pissed if that evil glare he was sending her meant anything.

This sucked. She needed to buy L and the police men time, needed to make this fight last as long as she could. This guy didn't look like he was going to allow her to complete said task very easily. Men and their easily bruised egos!

"Hello again, Angel," She hadn't paid him much attention the last time, but the tone of his voice was rather smooth and very confident. He clearly believed that he would be the victor this time around and reclaim his title as the champion of the illegal fighting world so many were involved in by a myriad of different circumstances, not all of them willing.

"Hello. Forgive me if I can't quite recall your name," Ebony replied calmly. Talking could help to lengthen the battle, though the crowd voiced their contempt for the idea of the combatants exchanging mild chitchat rather than rushing straight into battle, "Though, you didn't call me by mine either, so I suppose we're even."

"Hm. Never knew the Angel of Death had such a pretty voice," He remarked, not even hiding it as his dark hazel eyes scrolled over her figure, "Seems fitting, though."

"I can't say that I care for the comment," Ebony said, weaving her fingers together and pressing them against her lower abdomen as a proper lady would in the old days, her head held high despite the slight shaking developing in her overtaxed legs, "But it doesn't really matter either way. It wasn't sincere."

"Oh, really?" He smirked. He was still sure that her win had been a mere fluke before and thought of her as no more powerful or intelligent than most of the weak willed, sleazy women he usually surrounded himself with. The trait reminded Ebony of Light back when he was still Kira, "It's a shame a girl like you is fighting in a place like this. Why don't you give up and go home so no one will have to harm that pretty face of yours?"

"Do you realize that your words won't stick?" Ebony asked, tilting her head slightly, mockingly feigning innocence, "I've been fighting in this place since I was nine years old. I am able to tune out the comments of the weak minded and spiteful, those who lack faith in their own abilities to the point that they have to try to psychologically throw their opponents off their game. It's rather sad, really."

"So you're saying that I think I'm weak," Ebony was feeling rather smug. There was venom in his voice.

"So you understood my words. Good. I was afraid I'd have to repeat myself for you," Ebony grinned widely, the epitome of taunting and scorn. L was apparently rubbing off on her a bit, "And, yes. That is what I was saying."

The man scowled at her, dropping into a battle stance. It seemed that chitchat time was over, so Ebony also dropped into her stance, her muscles tensed as she awaited the first move.

It came in the form of a swift punch aimed at her face, which she just barely dodged. This guy had apparently gotten better since the last time she'd thrown him from the ring. Ebony narrowed her eyes as she shifted her stance slightly, calculating all the ways she could drag out this fight.

-oooOooo-

L slid through the crowd with the fluidity of a serpent, barely brushing anyone despite the lack of maneuvering room. His wide, dark eyes assessed the room, picking out the undercover task force members who were discreetly communicating with the SWAT officers that were standing by outside. Once assured that everyone was in their places, those dark eyes returned to the white figure on the raised arena, still thrilled at being able to see her again. It had been a chore to leave her after explaining his plan, his entire being wanting nothing more than to keep her in his arms and continue to engrain her taste in his daunting memory.

'_Soon,'_ L reminded himself, though every moment felt like hours. A burning feeling had attacked his throat, weaseling its way up from the pit of his stomach and made his hands want to curl into fists. He was not at all comfortable with the way that other fighter was looking at his Ebony, like she was a piece of meat on a hook, or a horse he was considering buying. It was bad enough watching her getting beaten over and over and over in fight after fight after fight that were clearly a form of punishment her keepers knew she wouldn't attempt escape from. Now his Ebony had to be subject to these males who were clearly undressing her with their eyes.

Wait, _his_ Ebony? L sighed. He may as well accept it, he wanted Ebony to be his, maybe even needed her to be his. The only thing standing in his way was all this fighting and Ebony's own unease to be in a romantic relationship with anyone. He had a feeling that last one wasn't much of a problem anymore if her response to his kiss earlier meant anything, and the fighting wouldn't be one for much longer either.

He couldn't hold back a wince when Ebony and her opponent began their fight, each throwing out crippling – even deadly – blows with practiced accuracy. His fingers twitched in his pockets as he resisted the urge to rush to her defense. It was a difficult task, but he managed to pull it off.

All they needed was a little more time to locate the mafia bosses, and then they could move in and make it so that Ebony would never have to step into that ring again. Her incredible sketches were definitely proving useful, providing them with the faces of everyone they needed to incapacitate and throw in jail.

Going over the plan in his head for about the thousandth time now, L watched the match carefully, seeing the level of brutality was more than it usually was. This other fighter apparently held a grudge against the porcelain girl, as he was coming at her with everything he had. L's fingernails dug into his palms when he _heard_ the blow the man had landed on Ebony's left eye, a bruise rising already. The blow knocked her off her feet and she just barely avoided the foot that came afterward, which would have crushed her skull had it hit its target. But she quickly rolled to her feet and kicked the other fighter in the back, nearly throwing him from the ring.

He then dropped and kicked her feet out from under her, bringing her to the floor again on her back with a loud thud. She got kicked violently in her side, wrenching a rare cry of pain from her vocal chords. She rolled so that the next blow hit her back, nearly forcing the air from her lungs. She protected her belly and face with her arms and legs as the kicks kept coming, but no sounds escaped her lips now since she was better prepared.

L was just about to screw the plan to Hell to go in and throw that man clear across the room when Ebony suddenly rolled away and made it to her feet, clutching her left side like a wounded animal.

'_This isn't good,'_ Ebony bit her lip as she held her side, shifting her feet a little, _'I think he broke my rib. It could puncture my lung if I'm not careful, and he probably knows it, too. Maybe he just bruised it. I hope so.'_

Digging through her memory, Ebony decided it would be best to put what she'd recently learned to work. Extremely grateful for her mimicking skills, the porcelain girl proceeded to shift to L's style of fighting, capoiera. She mentally thanked Light for getting into that fight with L during that unsuccessful 'date' with Misa. It had given her the opportunity to observe the fighting style and the time to figure out how to get her body to perform the complex acrobatics. It wasn't too hard with her fighting history, but she was thankful for the extra time.

L was very impressed when she perfectly copied the kick he'd sent Light after said boy had punched him in the face, thus causing him to crash into that small potted tree. He would have to challenge her to a spar when he got the chance.

Her opponent was caught off guard with the abrupt shift and realized he was seeing firsthand what made the Angel of Death such a formidable opponent. It was common for bare-knuckled fighters to not follow a specific style, usually just resorting to brute strength, intimidation, and a hell of a lot of luck. Others did use specific martial arts, adding speed and calculation to their arsenal. But the Angel of Death was renowned in this fighting world for how she could shift styles on a whim and could even copy her opponents' moves in the heat of battle.

'_Damn it, L!'_ Ebony winced when she got hit in the shoulder hard enough to dislocate it, forcing a cry of pain from her throat. Her body was giving out on her, _'Hurry up! This guy's really trying to kill me!'_

She retaliated by driving her heel into his face with enough force to break the skin and knock out two teeth. Her heel was cut by his teeth, but she'd had worse and barely felt it. She sent her fist into his stomach, forcing the air from his lungs and cracking at least two of his ribs, maybe three. She didn't give him time to recover and kept coming at him, landing strategic hits to his joints and abdomen, the body's weakest points. She only took a brief moment to back off when he was wheezing on the floor. She knew he'd get up again and that she should take the advantage of him being floored, but her shoulder was in agony and it was fogging her mind. Setting her teeth, she forced herself to go through the steps of relocating her shoulder.

'_Ok, body and arm perpendicular to the ground…elbow at 90 degrees…rotate arm and shoulder inward…carefully rotate outward with the upper arm stationary…when the elbow is past 90 degrees to the chest, PUSH!'_ She yelped when her arm popped back into place, only disgusted for a second with the sound. But the pain was gone immediately, making her sigh in relief. Her opponent only just then realized that he had dislocated her shoulder and was shocked that she'd managed to pop it back herself.

Ebony rolled her shoulder in relief, flexing her fingers as well. Blinking hard a few times, she trained her eyes on the other fighter again, sliding across the ring as though it were ice instead of flooring. Seeing his disadvantage, he scrambled to his feet and was more or less ready when Ebony moved back in, trying to read her movements.

L looked around, growing more than a little impatient with the others who should have located those mafia bosses by now. The more time they were taking finding those men was more time for the seriously fatigued Ebony to be injured, and it was clear that her opponent was going in for the kill. It disgusted him how this crowd was enjoying it, hoping to see one or the other of the fighters drop dead on the stage. These people weren't even human. It was sickening!

"_Ryuzaki,"_ L's wide eyes widened further at the sound of Matsuda's slightly shaky voice coming through the tiny earpiece perched uncomfortably in his ear. Really, he hated these things! His shaggy hair worked wonders to hide it, though, _"We found them! We have them in custody right now!"_

'_Finally,'_ L lifted his wrist to his lips, speaking into the small radio and said only two words.

"Move in."

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Author's Note: Cliffhanger!!

Please review!


	36. Return

Author's Note: I hope you all like this chapter. When I originally wrote it, 35 and 36 were one huge chapter, but then I cut it in half. I think it works better this way. Please enjoy!

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**36. RETURN**

The SWAT team crashed into the building and all was chaos. Ebony was distracted by the noise, her heart lifting. But that single moment of distraction proved to be a horrible mistake.

Her fighter got his hand around her throat and tackled her to the ground. His full body weight fell on her already injured ribcage, completely impairing her ability to breathe. Her body betrayed her as it panicked, making her claw at his arms in a desperate bid to get him off of her, but nothing was working. Her mind was too fogged with pain, insomnia, exhaustion, and a lack of oxygen to think logically and she was fading fast.

As though the powers that be suddenly decided to bless her, the weight was gone, letting her lungs expand so she could breathe. She was too weak to rise, her throat sore along with the rest of her body. She was finally registering the amount of pain her body was in and started remembering the blows she'd taken over the past two weeks. The adrenaline and her hope of freedom had numbed her body to the pain. Her ribs were in agony as well as her right ankle, and she'd probably badly pulled something in her left thigh. She couldn't move at all, her body finally giving in to all the nearly constant fighting she'd been forced to do to keep Misa safe.

L literally threw the man from the ring without regard to where he landed. For the first time in his life, red had invaded his vision when he saw that man wrap his vile fingers around his Ebony's throat and force her to the floor. He'd seen what little color Ebony had fade quickly to be replaced with blue as her lungs struggled in vain for air. He gently slid a hand under her head and lifted her carefully.

"Ebony," L tried to bring her back a little, "Ebony, please answer me."

Ebony blinked a few times, her eyes hazy, her pupils so dilated that her eyes almost looked red instead of the soft pink he was accustomed to. They moved a bit to lock on him, confusion evident before recognition brightened them.

"L?" Her voice was hoarse, probably from her throat being so mistreated in the past moment, "…C-can I s-stop now?"

"Yes," L was as careful as he could be as he lifted Ebony up into his arms, cradling her against his chest as he quickly descended from the arena and weaved through the crowd, intent on getting her medical attention, "What pains are you in?"

"Pain…? Oh," Ebony blinked hard, trying to bring her awareness back some. Her body was now registering that she was safe and was trying to make her mind recede so it could heal without being conscious of the pain, "My ribs….my ankle and m-my legs. My shoulders and….oh…everywhere…it hurts…t-to breathe," She lifted her arm, which felt like it weighed about forty pounds, and gripped the front of his shirt as tightly as the digits would allow, "Wh-where're we going?"

"Hospital," L replied, and Ebony cracked her eyes open enough to see the flashing red lights on L's face. She then kept her eyes open to stare at his face, using him to keep her conscious.

She momentarily freaked out when she felt other people handling her and actually gave one of the medics a black eye. When they had originally pushed the bizarre man carrying her out of the way, they immediately dragged L back, seeing how being separated from him had caused the injured girl to panic. He wasn't happy about the contact, but he withheld his own instinctive panic in order to calm Ebony. He knew she'd never been to a hospital before and that the idea rather scared her.

Once inside the ambulance, L fished his cell phone from his pocket and quickly dialed a number, his other hand reassuringly stroking the side of Ebony's face. The way she stared at him in order to keep herself calm and awake made him feel far more important than being the world's three greatest detectives ever had.

"Watari," L didn't worry about using the name since everything was so loud and the two medics back here tending to Ebony were too focused on the injured girl to pay attention to his conversation, "I am accompanying Ebony to the Ibaraki Hospital. You may come meet us there as soon as you can."

"Understood, Ryuzaki," That was the characteristic response from Watari, the way their conversations usually went. It was different this time, though, "How is she?"

"Not well," L replied unhappily, knowing Watari had come to care for Ebony very much as well, "She probably has some broken ribs and may have broken her right ankle. At the very least she sprained it rather badly. She dislocated heeerrrr…right shoulder, I believe it was, during her last fight, but popped it back in herself a few moments later," L noticed that the medics were now listening since they realized he was giving them a recounting of the injuries she had sustained and how they'd been inflicted, "She was nearly strangled, so her neck is badly bruised, and bruises cover just about everywhere else as well. She probably has a concussion from being thrown to the ring floor and being hit in the face. She has been forced to fight almost constantly in the past two weeks, so her body is completely exhausted."

Watari winced. He'd known Ebony would probably not be in the best of shape at the end of this whole nightmare, but that didn't mean he was wholly prepared for it. But he counted his blessings, glad that she was finally out of that world her upbringing had thrown her into.

"She is conscious, though," L continued, his eyes locked with Ebony's, "And reasonably lucid, I believe. Not completely, of course, but more than I would have suspected."

"Is that…Watari?" Ebony asked, wincing as her chest ached with her breathing. She suddenly cursed the fact that she had to breathe to live.

"Yes," L nodded as he hung up the phone without even saying goodbye. He was horrible at ending conversations, "He will be coming as soon as he can. He is worried."

"Sorry," Ebony said weakly, leaning into his palm a little. She was uncomfortable, but not just because of her injuries. In order to see what was wrong, the medics had proceeded to cut away her clothing. The loss of the white suit didn't bother her since she had planned to dispose of it herself as soon as she got the chance, though she'd been planning on burning it rather than simply cutting it up.

But that was a moot point. Her discomfort was due to the fact that she had never been around anyone when she was less than fully clothed. L's presence just made it worse, but at least they left her undergarments in place. It seemed silly to become modest at a time like this, but she guessed that maybe that was a good thing. At least it meant that she was aware enough to notice, so she probably wasn't dying.

"More of your unnecessary apologies," L sighed, making Ebony crack a tiny smile.

"Yeah…and what are you going to…going to do about it, eh?"

"Try not to talk so much," One of the medics chided her, shooting a warning glance at L.

-oooOooo-

It wasn't until the next day that L and Watari had somehow convinced the hospital to allow them to take Ebony home. She had been in the ER for a few hours, but then announced stable and put in a normal room. As it turned out, Ebony had gotten amazingly lucky. Nothing was broken and no other serious injuries had been found. She had some badly bruised ribs and her right ankle was indeed out of commission from a bad sprain. Bruises were visible just about everywhere and she probably had a bad concussion, maybe several, which meant she couldn't go to sleep like she wanted to for another several hours yet. Several cuts littered her ivory skin and she'd nearly torn some ligaments in her right thigh, and her shoulder was still very weak after being dislocated, crudely popped back into place, and allowed no time to recover before being overworked again. But other than that, she'd gotten really, _really_ lucky. It was probably because she was so flexible that she had avoided any fractures.

"EBONY-CHAN!!"

Ebony winced and buried her face in L's thin chest, gripping his shirt tightly. She was afraid that Misa would throw herself at her, regardless of the fact that she was injured and being held in L's surprisingly strong arms. She apparently did since she felt L sidestep and heard Misa stumble past them.

"Please refrain from strong embraces, Amane-san," L said in his usual monotone voice, "Ebony is very injured."

"Oh, Ebony-chan! I'm so sorry," Misa came close and was near tears, "Please forgive me!"

"For what?" Ebony asked when she peeked out from L's chest. She wondered briefly why she was wearing a nurse's outfit, but didn't ask, "You didn't do anything wrong."

"But it's all my fault that you had to go there and now look at you!" Misa gestured wildly to all her injuries, "You almost look like a mummy and it's all my fault! If I'd only listened-"

"Misa-san, please stop doing that," Ebony frowned, the action making her headache worse, "It's not your fault. Yeah, you were being stupid as hell, but it was my choice to trade myself for you. You never would have survived in that place."

"We're just so glad you're ok," Matsuda stepped up to them, wincing at the sight of Ebony's wounds, "You really had us worried for a while there."

"Thank you," Ebony didn't really know what else to say. She'd never had people care about her like this, so she wasn't sure how to react to it exactly.

"I am taking Ebony to bed. She needs to rest," L stated, beginning to make his way to one of the elevators. Misa tried to follow but L gently nudged her out of the lift with his foot, leaving him and Ebony alone when the doors slid shut.

"Misa-san is going to keep blaming herself, isn't she?" Ebony sighed, letting her head rest against L's shoulder.

"Probably, but she is to blame," L was blunt as usual, and he truly did blame the young model, "If she had gotten that photo back as you had asked, your picture would have never been publicized and your old bosses would have never found you."

"Just be nice," Ebony sighed, knowing there wasn't really a flaw in his argument, "She's already beating herself up enough as it is. She doesn't need any more animosity shown toward her that she's not already giving herself. What's done is done and it's not like I'm dying or permanently crippled or something. Give me a week and I'll be back to running around like a nut."

L smiled, unable to avoid it. Sarcasm always seemed to be popping out of her mouth no matter what kind of shape she was in. It had been the same at the hospital too.

_--flashback--_

"_Ok, I am certain now that I hate hospitals."_

_L chuckled quietly from his spot in the seat by her bed, amused at the pout on her face. Even though she'd nearly been killed, Ebony kept up a strong front and brushed the whole incident behind her. It was just another testament to how strong she was and served to increase L's admiration for her. Most people in her situation would have broken down long before now, may have even contemplated suicide, both of which she had never done._

"_This is for your own well-being," L replied calmly. His toes rubbed over each other as they usually did while he played with a lock of her limp sugar hair. Taking the usual precautions that were more like instincts for him, he had made sure his back was to each and every camera he'd come across and kept his head down. He reached over and stroked her cheek with one pale finger, being as gentle as possible because of the bruising, "Don't worry. You are stable and I plan on getting you back to headquarters by sunup tomorrow."_

"_Good," Ebony sighed, wincing when her ribs protested that action, "I actually kind of miss it there."_

"_Really?"_

"_Well, no. I guess not," She smiled tiredly at him, "I think I just missed you. You and Watari."_

_That adorable smile of his widened at her words. She had again succeeded in making him feel more important and needed than being a world-renowned detective._

"_I just kicked your ego up a couple notches, didn't I?" Ebony asked, raising one white brow. L's grin just widened more, "Oh, great. Like your head needs to get any bigger!"_

"_I believe that I stopped growing several years ago," L replied, returning her teasing without missing a beat._

_Ebony simply stuck her tongue out at him, too tired to think up a good comeback._

_--end flashback--_

L gently laid the injured girl in the bed she never used, ignoring her slight glare at being in a bed. The glare fell and a blush replaced it as he helped her out of her hospital gown and into the shirt of his she'd never returned after her laundry day, only fading when he covered her with the blankets he retrieved from the corner nest she usually slept in. Thankfully, he'd kept his dark eyes politely averted.

"Can you stay, please? I'll probably end up falling asleep if I'm alone."

He nodded at her request and sat beside her, his knees pulled to his chest like always. They spoke for several hours about random things, anything they could think of so Ebony wouldn't fall asleep. He had one long hand placed against her face, his thumb stroking her cheekbone as they spoke and gently shaking her ever now and then whenever she started to drift off. Watari called him when it was finally acceptable for Ebony to get some much needed sleep, and L stayed with her until she was deep in the land of dreams, leaving only then.

He did kiss her gently before he left, though, smiling at her bruised, yet still pretty face as he removed her dime earring from his ear and placed it on the small table beside her bed, thankful that she was still with him despite all that had happened.

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Author's Note: Well? Did you like it? Did you like it? Oh, I hope so!

**IvoryCrayon:** Does this make up for the cliffhanger? I hope so!

**Hao'sAnjul:** So the fight was good? I'm glad. I've never gone into this much detail on a fight and was worried on how it would come out. I'm glad I seemed to have gotten it right.

**Marisol Akyri:** Ok, no cliffhanger here. I'd say sorry for torturing you with the last one, but that would be lying, something I try to avoid unless completely necessary.

**SugarLandBabyGirl:** Yes, Ebony is back safe and sound. Yay!

**OoOlady heatherOoO:** I'm so happy you like Ebony. If you want to read about another really good OC, read Mel1983's stories. She is awesome with OC's. Trust me.

**vala-anna:** Glad you like how L's hair hid the ear piece. I hope you enjoyed this chapter as much as the last one.

**nekosoulreaper:** I don't want to give away anything. I'm glad my OC works with L, and I love happy endings.

MeganElyse: Yay! New reviewer! I am definitely going to keep going with this story till it's finished.

**MythCreatorWriter:** What do you mean when you say Abridged series? I have no clue what you're talking about. And don't worry about being like Light by feeling superior. You only have to worry if you start feeling like killing off bad people at your leisure. Please check into a psych ward if that happens. Oh yeah, and I'm happy for your name change! No more funny last name! Yay!

Please review for me!

-HaleyJo


	37. My Life and Name

Author's Note: This chapter is very relaxed...sort of.

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**37. MY LIFE AND NAME**

L frowned as he watched Ebony slowly work her way down the floating staircase. Soichiro moved to help her as soon as he noticed how L was staring at the stairs instead of the monitors or the laptop, gently reprimanding her for moving around after only resting for a couple of days.

"Don't worry about it," Ebony waved off Soichiro's concern even as she accepted his help so she could get all the way down the stairs, "I've always been a very fast healer, probably from being in all those fights. Naturally, my body would recover faster than most other people's would. See? Even my black eye is almost gone."

It was true. The dark, swollen flesh that had hindered her left eye from opening more than halfway was normal sized again and the skin beneath was only a few shades darker than it usually was because of her white complexion.

"You still should rest, Ebony," L stated as she limped her way over and settled carefully into one of the rotating chairs. She obviously hated having to use one of those canes that wrapped around your arm, but her right ankle still refused to support her weight, "You were fighting for almost two weeks straight and-"

"I'm fully aware of how much I was fighting," Ebony rolled her eyes at him, ignoring the slightly irritated expression he got from being interrupted, "I can rest just as well here as anywhere else, thank you very much. It's very boring up in my room and I do want to know what all has been going on since I left. I'm feeling a little left out."

The way she talked, one would think she'd merely gone out to visit old friends or something for a couple of days rather than be forced to fight almost to the death.

"We're figuring out a way to catch Higuchi!" Misa perked up from her place beside her, so glad to see her friend alive and not mad at her. The same couldn't be said for L, who still harbored some resentment toward her, but Ebony made him keep his opinions to himself.

"Higuchi?" Ebony made that humming noise as she thought. L had missed that little noise, "I'm drawing a blank."

"Higuchi Kyosuke is the head of Technological Development for Yotsuba," L explained, "Misa-san used her cell phone just before you came back the other day to record him confessing to being the current Kira."

"He confessed?" Ebony looked back over to Misa, wincing slightly as her muscles protested the movement, "How'd you get him to do that?"

"I told him I was the second Kira, who looked up to the real Kira, and wanted to marry him," Misa giggled.

"So…you more or less seduced him," Ebony stated, "Is that what the nurse's outfit was for?"

"I did not!" Misa's face burned as she straightened up in indignation, "Misa would never seduce another man! Only my Light!"

"You basically offered yourself to him in exchange for his confession," Ebony started massaging a sore muscle in her right forearm, growing tired from just sitting up straight, a task that used to be a very simple one. She looked over at the couches by the stairs longingly, contemplating whether it was worth the effort to go lay down, "That is a form of seduction even if it doesn't directly pertain to sex. Seduction doesn't mean strictly sexual manners anyway. It can be over just about anything. Besides, it doesn't matter. Tons of investigators seduce their targets in order to capture them. You were just working with what you had and any other attractive girl on a mission would do the same."

"Except for you," Misa snickered, pointing at her, "You would just kick them in the face!"

"Yeah, probably," Ebony giggled, wincing at the same time as the movement hurt her ribs, "Don't make me laugh, Misa-chan! It hurts!"

"'Misa-chan'?! We're friends now?" Misa squealed and Light had to hold her back from giving Ebony one of her death hugs which would have been seriously painful given her injured state, "Yay!! Ebony-chan and Misa-Misa are friends!"

"You should be resting if laughter causes you pain," L stated over Misa as he used his foot to push the chair Ebony was in, the wheels carrying her to the couch she had been staring at like he would stare at sweets.

"Yes, father," Ebony rolled her eyes but got up to lay on the couch anyway, sighing in relief when her spine no longer had to work on supporting her body.

'_And now she is back to mocking me,'_ L thought, his mind's voice sarcastic even though the knowledge pleased him immensely. It meant that everything was back to normal, as normal as this case could get. A smile peeked at his lips as he watched the dime earring dangling from her earlobe, the earring he had worn for a little over two weeks before returning it to her once she returned to headquarters.

"Hey, Ebony-chan?"

"Aye?" Ebony followed Misa with her eyes as she moved to sit on the couch across from her and set her bag down on the coffee table between them. Ebony was working on getting her cane detached from her arm, leaning it against the couch's arm when she was done.

"I wanted to know and, well…" Misa took a deep breath, "How'd you get all caught up in that fighting thing in the first place?"

Ebony stared at her for a moment before moving her gaze to the ceiling, her fingers fiddling with the chains of her hip holster. Everyone else paused in what they were doing, curious about her tale. Each of them had been curious about how a girl like her had ended up in a world like that, but had been trying to wait out of consideration for her injuries. Actually, they were surprised that L hadn't asked already since he lacked that kind of social tact.

"I guess I need to go way back, otherwise things won't make sense," Ebony began, deciding that they should hear her story. She owed it to them after they had gone through all the trouble to rescue her. She took another moment to get her thoughts in order, trying to figure out how far she needed to go back in time before she began, "My mother met my father in college. She was really pretty and really smart and really strong-willed. Practically the perfect woman you almost never see outside movies or books. My father fell in love with her very quickly, but she was more focused on building her life rather than gaining romance."

"She sounds like you," Misa giggled, remembering how Ebony was always saying that she had no time for love and that her job and school – back when she'd still had them – were more important. After losing those excuses, though, she'd just gone into denial.

"Yeah, I guess," Ebony smiled, not upset with her interruption, "Anyway, it took a lot of work for my father to woo her, but she eventually gave him a chance. They were married about two years later, not too long after they'd graduated. It was like they were the perfect couple. Both got along with each other's family, they were friends with everybody, they had a modest little home and very successful careers. My father was a well-known D.A. and my mother a highly respected social worker. She loved kids."

"Did your dad like kids too?" Misa asked, interrupting again.

"You shouldn't interrupt her like that, Misa," Light reprimanded her.

"It's ok, Light-san. I don't mind," Ebony assured them, "Yeah, my father liked kids. He was the oldest out of six siblings including himself, so he was used to hanging around younger kids. Anyway, my mother got pregnant with me about a year into the marriage and they were all excited. They were ready to begin adding to their little family of two, and everybody was looking forward to the delivery, especially my mother. She was thrilled about becoming a mom."

Ebony paused, and everyone realized that this was when the happy story started going downhill.

"Something went really wrong," Ebony continued, "When her water broke in the kitchen while she was making dinner, my mother was in labor for hours and hours and in severe pain. My father was just about losing his mind while he drove her to the hospital and called family. They had to wait in the waiting room due to the complications and….then received the news that my mother had died not a minute after I was born. It was told that I died as well, so no one knew I was alive. My father was completely heartbroken and it showed when he started drinking, even before her funeral. He'd lost his job and our home in a span of two months and we moved to this little shack in the slums. He got the house by being a drug trafficker for this small-time dealer and all the money went to his addictions.

"When I was five years old, I started going to the library because I wanted to learn things. I couldn't go to school since, legally speaking, I was dead. I never thought to go to the police since I was scared of adults and just people in general at the time," The entire time she spoke, Ebony kept her eyes on the ceiling, refusing eye contact with anyone, "My father had friends over sometimes and I would always hide in the smallest places I could find. It wasn't hard since I was always so little and I was usually skinnier than I was supposed to be since we didn't have much food. No one ever knew he had a little girl living with him since there were no signs of me around the house at all.

"About a year after I started spending time in the library, I started getting noticed by people who just wanted someone to screw with and saw me as an easy target because I was so little. I got into street fights often and that's how I was noticed by some of those big mafia guys when I was nine. They offered me a chance to participate, and I had really needed the money," She paused for a moment, pinching the bridge of her nose as she screwed her eyes shut, "I didn't want to, but I wouldn't have survived otherwise. Things went on like that until I was thirteen, when I moved out of my father's house. I just kind of wandered around until I left the fighting a few months before I started attending Light-san's high school.

"And so, there you have it!" Ebony giggled as she tapped her finger against her holster, "Story of my life! Now can we talk about something else? That was highly depressing."

"And I thought my life was depressing," Misa sighed, thinking about her parents' murders.

"Ah, don't worry about it," Ebony waved off her words, "My life's good now, so why be unhappy about my past?"

"How did you keep clean?" Misa asked, "Ebony-chan said she just wandered around…"

"I went to gyms or schools at night after everyone was gone," Ebony shrugged, "The showers there are decent, and as long as nothing was out of place when I left, no one ever knew I was there."

L then spoke from his chair, "What are your parents' names?"

"My mother was Japanese. Her name was Goto Akiko. My father was American, but was raised in Japan. His name was Samuel Jamison Accott," She giggled, "I have no need to hide my name anymore, I guess. My father wanted some of his heritage in me, so they'd made plans to have me have a middle name. Did you know you have to go through the government to do that? It's nuts!"

"So what's your full name?" Misa asked. Ebony said it before L could tell her not to.

"My name is Ebony Rose Accott. It's nice to meet you!"

"Oh! Such a pretty name!" Misa giggled, "Works since you're pretty too!"

Ebony rolled her eyes, draping a hand across her face to help hide her blush as her words made her recall a small incident from before she, Misa, Light, and Soichiro were confined and after Takada had started her rumor. She had started liking L back then even if she hid it well…

_--flashback--_

_Ebony twirled one of her curls between her fingers as she looked into the mirror. She was irritated that she had started to worry over her appearance recently, but she couldn't help it. She knew that part of the reason – probably the only reason – was because she had become quite smitten with L, which was completely embarrassing and somewhat degrading in her eyes. She had never wanted anyone before, nor had she ever needed anyone, so to suddenly want someone as much as she did was somewhat staggering. Physical attractiveness was a key part in courting someone, but that was where she hit a dead end. _

"_Hm, I never would have thought you to be the type of female to stare at mirrors."_

_Ebony jumped slightly, shifting her eyes to see the reflection of L standing behind her. Swallowing her pride and fear, she asked something that she had never asked anyone before._

"_L…is there something wrong with me?"_

_L seemed surprised by the question, "Why do you ask?"_

"_Well, I don't have any girl friends, they seem to hate me. And boys don't talk to me, they barely even look at me," Ebony muttered that one with a deep flush but turned to look at L, "You're a guy. A weird guy, but a guy. Can you tell me what's wrong with me?"_

_L stared for a moment before smiling that adorably innocent smile, even chuckling slightly. She raised a brow, asking what he was laughing at._

"_There is nothing wrong with you at all, Ebony-chan," L said, elaborating after seeing her disbelieving face, "In truth, the reason people avoid you is because you are so beautiful. Females are terribly jealous, feeling quite plain when standing beside you, and males are too afraid of hurt from rejection by such a beautiful young woman to even attempt to woo you. You are an incredibly intimidating person even though you don't mean to be."_

_L was amused by the shade of red her face had become as he spoke. She spun to his left and walked a couple of steps before rocking back on her heels. She craned her neck as far as she could away from him, but he could see her embarrassed grin through the mirror._

"_I guess movies lie, then, since they always show the beautiful, popular girls constantly surrounded by boys," She let out a shaky laugh and her arms swung gently at her sides, all telltale signs that she was embarrassed and trying to deny that she was also flattered._

_--end flashback--_

That was the first time someone had called her beautiful as a simple fact rather than as a pass at her, something she had grown numb to during her time in the underground fighting. She'd been subjected to many lewd comments and gestures and suggestions from perverted men in that world so much that she didn't recognize any wooing attempts from people in the normal world.

"Well then, Ebony Rose," L addressed her now, "Will you please give your body a chance to rest now?"

Ebony stuck her tongue out at him, seeing the teasing grin peeking at his lips.

* * *

Author's Note: This good? Is it? Is it?

**Marisol Akyri:** Yes, Ebony is back. So yeah, Misa met with Higuchi already. The old pervert! Ugh! I hate him!

**The.Myth.Of.Normality:** Thank you. Your review is sweet! I have basically no social life either. How else do you think I find the time to write so much? Ha! I laugh at myself!

**LittleKittyShaoMao:** Sorry if this isn't shaping up how you would have liked. I can't please everyone. Do you like tragedies, or something? I'm not good with those. Well, I suppose I could be, but I like happy endings better. So I'm sorry in advance, but I appreciate how you've been honest despite your own preferences. That means a lot. Thank you!

Please review for me!

-HaleyJo


	38. Start Screaming

Author's Note: Ok, shit really starts hitting the fan in this chapter. The relaxed moment was short-lived, wasn't it?

* * *

**38. START SCREAMING**

L, Misa, and Light were all glued to the monitor screens as Higuchi entered the Yoshida productions building, intent on getting Matsuda's name. He was still safe, however, since his fake résumé at Yoshida said his name was Yamashita Taichiro. As long as he didn't have the second Kira's ability and no access to a picture of Matsuda, he would be safe from death despite his daring risk. L leaned forward slightly as Higuchi pulled out Matsuda's fake file.

'_Now,'_ L's grip on his knees grew tighter, _'Show me how you kill.'_

Higuchi pulled a notebook out of his briefcase and wrote down Matsuda's fake name. L's dark eyes widened as Light grew confused.

"No good! He just wrote the name down and he's leaving," Light's hand curled into a fist on the counter, "He's not going to kill him here?"

"_Ryuzaki, do we apprehend him?"_ Mogi's voice came through as the big man watched Higuchi leaving the file room.

"He hasn't revealed how he kills yet," L replied, his hands tightening further on his knees as his thoughts raced around, banging into each other inside his skull, "He may be planning to do something in the car that we can pick up with the cameras. We'll catch him after that. Join Wedy in tailing him."

"But he should want to kill Matsuda as soon as possible," Light protested though his eyes never left the screens, "Yet he's so calm…"

"Yes, if he needs the name, he should have just taken the résumé," L agreed, "Yet he returned it to the drawer…"

L's focus slipped a bit as his mind rebelled against a memory that was being rushed to the forefront of his mind.

_--flashback--_

_L drummed his fingers against his knee, his head cocked to the side as he watched Ebony sleep on her little cot in her confinement cell. Hanging from his other hand was her hip holster, the one she had protested so vehemently against leaving behind. The others were asleep now as well, so there was no one to say he was violating her privacy._

_What was so precious about this holster that she would carry it with here wherever she went and refuse to relinquish it to another's care no matter what?_

_Deciding to find out, L pressed the pentagram in the center and it popped open. His long fingers flicked the lid up and started digging through the contents. There were plenty of random things inside. A few keys, some pencils and erasers, some scraps of paper with notes or funny quotes on them that had the date and time she'd heard or said them, some pieces of jewelry, a grape-flavored Kool-Aid Singles mix, a bag of sugar cubes, some batteries, a small MP3 player, and the tracker cell phone he'd given her for emergencies. So far, there was nothing he could see that she would be so protective over._

_L was about to close it back up when he noticed the zipper inside the back. He used his index and thumb fingers as he always did and dragged the zipper open. Feeling around, L pulled out what seemed to be a college-ruled notebook. It was white on the back and front covers and seemed rather old. He flipped through it a bit, but there was nothing written in it._

_Deciding that it was nothing major, L put it back where it was, snapping the holster closed._

_--end flashback--_

Whatever that notebook was, it killed, and Ebony had one. She had known of them, had known how Kira killed, and had never told anyone.

'_Why?'_

No, that was a stupid question. Anyone would deem her insane had she ever even hinted at the possibility of a notebook being a murder weapon. How hard it must have been for her to keep silent while people died. How hard it must have been to bear such knowledge while watching the investigation team flounder for answers and come up with nothing. It must have made her sick to be able to do nothing but _watch_.

"He's going for his phone," Light's voice broke him from his musings, brought him back to the present.

"Must be Misa-san again."

"Bingo!" Misa giggled as her phone went off, going directly to voicemail. Higuchi was slumped against his steering wheel, obviously thinking deeply about something.

He then said five small words.

"_Rem…I make the trade."_

"Trade? What is this Rem he keeps mentioning?" Light was terribly confused, not at all good with abstract or impossible ideas, "Is Kira's power really from the heavens?"

"I'd rather not think that."

"Then who's Rem?" Light asked.

"A Shinigami…?" L wondered if Ebony could shed some light on the subject, but she was upstairs resting. He had gone to see her a couple hours ago only to find her slumped over at her desk, her sketchbook lying open under her hand. L had carefully put her to bed, would have kissed her had Light not been with him due to the chain, "Anyway, let's keep watching what happens. Looks like he's up to something and we might be able to verify the method of killing."

Higuchi suddenly started driving again, a maniacal grin on his face like his wildest dreams had just come true. Mogi and Aiber went to follow him in the car while Wedy followed on her motorcycle. When he was suddenly pulled over by a cop for speeding, Wedy had been forced to go past him and wait up ahead so as not to arouse suspicion. L's gut twisted as he saw Higuchi reach into his briefcase, searching for his 'license'.

"_Higuchi's on the run from a motorcycle cop!"_ Mogi exclaimed from his car as Higuchi suddenly floored it and he fell into pursuit as well. However, that motorcycle cop crashed into the back of a large truck not a minute later, an innocent victim.

"Rem…trade…" Light's mind was racing, trying to make sense of this whole thing even though nothing seemed to be falling into place.

"Everyone! It's determined that it's too dangerous to allow further action by Higuchi! We haven't verified the method of killing yet, but we will assume that he has evidence on him and switch to capture mode," L suddenly said, the seriousness and urgency in his voice causing Misa and Light to jump, "But like the second Kira, assume that Higuchi can now kill with just a person's face!"

L quickly contacted the NPA while Light contacted his father, who was waiting with Demegawa at Sakura TV.

"Well then, Yagami-kun," L stood up on his seat and hopped down with more grace than his awkward gait should have allowed, "Shall we go too?"

"Yeah…"

"Sorry, Misa-san, but we'll need to make it so you can't move from here," L said as he snapped a set of handcuffs around her wrists.

"Huh?! What's this?! You gotta be kidding!"

"Misa, do what he says," Misa immediately stopped complaining at Light's command.

"Be careful, Light. And Ryuzaki, too," Misa called after them after she was pretty much covered in handcuffs from head to toe.

"Thanks, Misa," Light called back.

"If we don't return, someone should come and free you in twenty-four hours," L said without looking back, "And Ebony is upstairs, so you're not alone."

Misa grumbled to herself, shifting slightly since all the restraints weren't exactly comfortable.

As though the powers that be had smiled at her, Ebony came carefully down the staircase about ten minutes after Light and L left, rubbing one eye as she yawned widely. Her get-up was a set of black pajama bottoms that only let her toes show and a button-up black pajama top that was slipping off her left shoulder.

"Ebony-chan!" Misa exclaimed excitedly. It was amazing how quickly Ebony's body had healed. In just four days, she was walking around like normal without the cane and her bruises were almost completely gone. The only sign of her previous traumatic experience was that she couldn't walk very far before having to rest.

"Hi, Misa-chan," Ebony tugged the collar of her top back up over her slim shoulder only to have it fall back down, so she let it be, "Why the chains? This isn't some weird bondage thing, is it?"

"No! Of course not," Misa scoffed. She was still surprised that Ebony would crack such jokes since she seemed so modest, "There's nobody here!"

"Yeah, where is everyone?" Ebony asked, looking around the room as she came to sit down.

"They're going after Higuchi," Misa explained, "We still don't know how Kira kills, but Light and Ryuzaki-san are going to find out right now!"

"Really?" Ebony grinned widely, "That's great! This whole nightmare will finally be over!"

"Yeah, and we can go back to our normal lives," Misa wriggled in enthusiasm as much as she could given the chains, "What are you planning to do after Kira is caught, Ebony-chan?"

"Going to do…?" Ebony paused, looking up at the ceiling and making that humming noise, "I…I guess I haven't thought about that yet. This thing seems to have become my life…and you guys are my only friends, so…"

"Are you going to stay with Ryuzaki-san?" Misa asked, grinning mischievously as the white haired girl's cheeks turned red, "Misa knows you like each other, so are you going to stay with him?"

"I…I can't say I don't want to," Ebony admitted, rubbing her upper arm uncomfortably, "But 'L' has bigger obligations to the world. I could never ask him to stay somewhere just for my sake. That would be wrong."

"Then why not go with him?" Misa's face became dreamy and she clasped her bound hands together, "Oh, I can just imagine it! Going all over the world, solving cases and bringing peace to the weak while touring exotic places! Just the two of you! How romantic!"

Ebony had to admit that the idea sounded appealing. Being able to help L solve cases and spending time together between said cases…it sounded like a dream to her after living the affectionless life she had.

"You're thinking about it!" Misa giggled like a schoolgirl, "Ebony-chan is seriously in love! It's so cute!"

Ebony chuckled softly, shaking her head as she placed her arms over it and hid behind her bed hair like a small child.

-oooOooo-

L expertly directed the helicopter from the roof of the headquarters in pursuit of the panicking Higuchi as he went from the Yotsuba building to Sakura TV, continuing to fail in killing Matsuda since Matsuda wasn't there. After clipping Soichiro in the shoulder with his gun, the crazed man jumped back into his car, looking for any means to escape.

"Can you handle one of these, Yagami-kun?" L lifted a handgun to the bronze haired teenager, "Well, hold on to it for protection. This is Kira we're up against."

"No, those aren't allowed in Japan," Light shook his head. He had never liked the idea of guns.

"I bet Yagami-san said the same thing," L mused, certain the by-the-book former detective would have refused a gun as well since he was no longer authorized to have one on him.

"What's this?" Watari looked out the helicopter opening at a blockade of tinted-glass police cars blocking off the highway, the cotton ski mask he was wearing to protect his face from Kira moving slightly with his words, "I told the police to stay out of it…"

"Aizawa," L stated, glad for the support to keep Higuchi was getting away. When Higuchi tried to spin to go back the other way, Watari used a rifle to take out one of his tires. The man might have been old, but his marksmanship was as sharp as ever. Higuchi's car spun out of control and into the cement wall, halting any attempt to get away.

"STAY BACK!!" Higuchi yelled as he placed a gun against his temple, "EVERYONE STAY BACK!!"

"This is bad," Light said.

"So stupid," L sighed, "Watari, please take care of this problem."

"Right away, Ryuzaki," Watari hefted his rifle up, took aim, and shot the gun from Higuchi's wavering hand.

It was finally over.

More than a year of hard work, pain, loss, tragedy, suffering, and fear was finally over.

Soichiro and Mogi climbed from their car with tinted helmets on to protect their lives. L allowed them to approach Higuchi to arrest him and told Watari to monitor Higuchi very closely. At even the slightest hint of suspicious movement, he was to incapacitate him, but keep him alive.

Once Higuchi was handcuffed, blinded and gagged, Soichiro told L over a transmitter than Higuchi was officially in custody.

"Higuchi, how have you been killing?" Light asked once Mogi placed a headset on Higuchi, "I'm asking how you've killed people as Kira! Spill it!"

"If you won't talk," L warned when Higuchi hesitated, pouring himself a hot cup of coffee he had brought with him in a thermos, "I'll do whatever it takes to make you."

"…_The notebook,"_ Higuchi relented, knowing he was finished, _"You probably won't believe it, but there's a notebook that kills whoever's name you write in it, if you know what they look like. It's in my bag in the car!"_

"Y-Yagami-san," L hated that slight stutter, "Please check to see if such a thing is in the car…"

Soichiro pulled out Higuchi's bag from the passenger seat of the red Porsche. He rifled through it and pulled out a battered-looking notebook with the words 'Death Note' inscribed across the top.

He started screaming.

"Yagami-san, please calm down," L tried to get the older officer to gather his wits as he kept reaching for his not-present gun holster, "You are not armed at the moment."

"_O-oh yeah…"_

After that, people kept screaming every time they touched the notebook, each yelling about some kind of monster only they could see.

'_Monster…Notebook…A Shinigami?'_

"Please bring the notebook to the helicopter," L asked. Soichiro gave the notebook to Mogi who then wormed his way through the cars to the helicopter and handed it to L with shaking hands.

"Here it is, Ryuzaki."

L turned his head.

"A Shinigami…" L breathed, looking upon a ghastly creature he had seen once before, "They really do exist…"

'_Notebook…'_

'_Show each other our notebooks in Aoyama…'_

'_Yagami Light and Amane met in Aoyama…'_

'_Notebook…'_

'_Kira…'_

'_Second Kira…'_

'_Met in Aoyama…'_

'_Love at first sight…'_

'_This is Kira's method of killing…Kira…The second Kira…Yagami Light was Kira…He'd never use it in front of me…But…Kira…The second…At least two notebooks exist…two…this isn't over yet. And Ebony…"I draw what I see"…'_

Light then took the notebook from L's long fingers.

He started to scream.

-oooOooo-

Ebony yawned. It was nearly four in the morning and no one had come back yet. She was truly starting to get rather bored by just staring at the monitor by the entrance, awaiting their return. She simply doodled in a napkin to entertain herself, drifting off into her own little world.

"Ebony-chan! They're back! They're back!" Misa's sudden squeal almost gave her a heart attack.

"Really?!" Ebony snapped her head up to look at the screen.

Her smile was immediately wiped from her lips as her face turned to one of complete shock and horror and pain, her breath leaving her lungs in a rush. The plastic mechanical pencil she was using snapped between her fingers as they clamped down as hard as they could, her body beginning to shake like she'd just stepped out onto the frozen tundra of Greenland.

"Ebo-"

Misa couldn't finish before Ebony bolted from the room much faster than her injured state should have allowed, leaving Misa alone with the monitors.

* * *

Author's Note: Stuff is happening! Ebony has a Death Note! It feels like I'm killing the characters with all this up and down crap. Oh well. I am the god of this little world and the characters will do as I say. DANCE, PUPPETS, DANCE!! (maniacal laughter) Ahem, sorry about that. I just pulled another Light again. Shit. Oh well.

**LittleKittyShaoMao:** Thank you so much for your honesty. You are just too cool. If you like tragedies, this is probably not the story for you, but I'm glad that you are being honest about it. Other people just badmouth something if it's not their cup of tea, but you're all cool about it. You rock.

**SugaLandBabyGirl:** I like Ebony's full name too. Not so much her last name since I made her dad a bastard, but I like the Ebony Rose combination. I realized later that I had subconsciously made it similar to Emily Rose from that movie, but I had grown so fond of the name that I couldn't change it after I realized that. She _was_ Ebony Rose by that point and changing the name would have felt disloyal to her.

**MythCreatorWriter:** I thought it would make Ebony's character more real if I gave her quirks I've seen in real life. And what does 'getting to the wire' mean?

**Hao'sAnjul:** Yeah, giving out her name like that seems pretty stupid, huh?

**Marisol Akyri:** Seems like you were right. And it is getting to that time, isn't it? (sighs unhappily)

**michi-nin:** Yeah, giving out her name is really the only foolish thing she's done so far. Sounds pretty stupid of her, doesn't it? Maybe because of the pain from the fighting?

**vala-anna:** So Ebony's past is good? That's good. I was kind of worried that I was being melodramatic.

**SomeOtherPerson:** I actually put that flashback in at the last second. It was a bit I had written several months ago when I was just writing up scenes I might use and I really wanted to fit it in because it just seemed so cute!

Review the chapter! Tell me what you think!

-HaleyJo


	39. Reunion

Author's Note: Ok, this chapter is going to surprise the pants off of all of you. I'm sure of it. I surprised myself with the idea, not meaning to brag. I hope you all enjoy it! I did!

* * *

**39. REUNION**

"Ebony?"

…….

"Ebony?"

…….

"Do you realize that I can have Watari open the door from his monitoring room?"

…….

_Click!_

L sighed as the door was finally unlocked. Ebony had been hiding in the kitchen since before their return and refused to come out or even answer. Considering her condition, L had been worried that she had gotten hurt from overexerting herself so soon, but Misa had said she just randomly locked herself in the kitchen just as they arrived back from the successful and failed capture of Higuchi. He had been trying to coax her out willingly, but no such luck, so he'd had to resort to threatening to open the door with a code.

Once he entered the kitchen, he found Ebony huddled behind the counter still in her pajamas, hugging her knees and hiding her face like a small child, rocking slightly back and forth. L wasn't at all sure how to approach an upset woman, so he decided to circumvent it.

"I smell cake."

A small, shaky chuckle escaped the girl despite her clear distress and she lifted her head slightly. It didn't seem as though she had been crying, but she obviously hadn't slept since locking herself in here. She lifted a hand and curled all but her index finger, using the digit to point at the counter.

"Watari told me your birthday was a holiday that resembled you greatly," Ebony giggled again, having to clear her throat before continuing, "The only holiday that even remotely resembles you is Halloween, so I used my not-as-impressive-as-yours-but-still-adequate deductive skills to determine that your birthday is the thirty-first of October. So I made you an extra special cake, just like I said I would."

L smiled slightly as he looked at the cake sitting on the counter. It was completely white save for the black gothic 'L' in the center. As a joke about Halloween, tiny bats lined the edge and tiny jack-o-lanterns lined the base.

"Thank you, Ebony. But I know that you are well aware that is not what I wish to discuss with you," L approached her and knelt beside her, gathering her into his arms, "Now please, tell me why you're so afraid of the Shinigami in the other room."

"…I…I'm not afraid of her," Ebony said in a small voice, still refusing to lift her head.

"You know her, though," L stated, wondering how Ebony could tell that the creature was female, "You have for a long time. I have seen her image in your sketchbook along with another creature I assume is another Shinigami, but that one isn't important right now. Please tell me how you know this Shinigami and why her presence upsets you so much."

"I guess I don't really have a choice," Ebony gripped the front of his shirt tightly, "Just please don't tell the others. Please. They would be scared of me."

"…Is she the one who took care of you in place of your father, Ebony?"

"Your intelligence is scary sometimes," Ebony took in a shaky breath, "Yes. She is. Rem…she's my mother."

"…Your mother?" L tilted his head slightly, "Not possible. Your mother was human."

"I know. I had two mothers, as it were," Ebony removed herself from his arms and looked away, staring at the wall beside her like it was suddenly the most amazing thing she'd ever seen, "See, my human mother had a Death Note on her during her pregnancy. Rem had made certain that that would happen."

"Why?" L asked, his curiosity more than piqued.

Ebony smiled a bit, looking so sad and wistful as she looked up at the ceiling, "The same reason as most females, I guess. She wanted a child. Shinigami can't reproduce, and deliberately giving the Death Note to a child under six years old is against the rules. See, when children are small, they are more susceptible to the auras of Shinigami and physically start to change. That rule was made when an incident like mine happened who knows how many years ago. The child was killed and it was law that there was never to be a creature both human and Shinigami, and if a Shinigami's Death Note was picked up by a small child, they would have to die. No one thought it was even possible until that child began to change," Ebony sighed, "But my mother didn't care. She had been watching the human world for some time and felt jealous of human women. She wanted a little baby too, so she gave her Death Note to my human mother after watching her for a while. She had guessed that if a child could be affected when under the age of six, then a developing baby would be affected even more. She's smart like that."

"Your mother Akiko allowed her to stay, then?" L asked.

"Yes. My human mother was a very good person. When my other mother explained what she had done, my human mother wasn't mad at her at all. She was going to allow Rem to stay and help her raise her baby when it was born. She kept the Death Note secret from my father, though, for after the baby was born, worried about how he would take it," Ebony's voice was strained as she continued to speak, "But neither of them knew the complications that would entail delivering a baby both Shinigami and human. Things went horribly wrong when my human mother went into labor, and she died."

"So the complications you told us of before," L mused, "They resulted from your duel heritage."

"Yeah. After my human mother died, Rem took care of me all the time since my father wouldn't. He could never even look at me without flying into fits of rage. My mother would always protect me, though. She never let him hurt me even once. She was always with me, even on my trips to the library. She never liked it that I'd gotten involved in the bare-knuckled fighting and tried to talk me out of it, but even she knew I didn't really have a choice," Ebony took a deep breath and let it out slowly, "When I was twelve, my mother just up and vanished without warning, and I never saw her again….until now. I'd thought she was dead."

"What made you draw that conclusion?" L asked, "There are ways to kill Shinigami?"

"Yes, but very, very few know the ways how," Ebony explained, glad to be talking about something not relating to her past, "I know that Shinigami can die if they don't write names in their Death Notes...You do know what the Death Note is, right?"

"Yes. I saw Rem's and the one in your holster."

"You went through my holster?" Ebony hissed before she deflated and looked away again, "I guess that's not surprising. It was when I was in confinement?"

"Yes, though I didn't know what it was at the time," L explained, "It was blank, so I didn't think much of it."

"I've never used it, I swear," Ebony looked back at him, her rosy eyes begging him to believe her, "Rem gave it to me so I could use it to protect myself if it was my only way out, but I've never used it. I'm not a murderer!"

"I know this, Ebony," L gently stroked the side of her face with his thumb, "You have too much empathy to kill. But what is the Death Note's purpose? The Shinigami – your mother – is being difficult with her answers whenever a question is asked."

"Thank you," She allowed her face to lean into his palm slightly, "See, if a Shinigami kills a human who had, say, thirty more years to live, then the Shinigami gets thirty years added to their own lifespan. The Death Note is a Shinigami's key to survival, and they really don't think anything about killing people. It's kind of like how we view animals when we eat them. They're just a way for us to survive, so it's the same thing to a Shinigami. It's very rare for a Shinigami to die by not writing names, though. They would have to be impossibly lazy. Shinigami also can't be killed by a Death Note."

"_I'm not afraid of Kira."_

"You are also immune to the Death Note's powers," L said, now seeing that sentence in a new light, "And you tripping on your way back from the bakery was a result of that immunity. You had a heart attack that night."

"Yes to both," Ebony nodded, "Somehow, the Shinigami King discovered my existence. The penalty for such a transgression is death, I'm sure, so I was certain my mother was dead by this point. Just after she disappeared, I had a heart attack. It was…very painful," Ebony's hand moved from her earring to over her heart, gripping the black fabric, "But I didn't die. My mother had explained to me how the Death Note worked, so I knew that I had just survived a Death Note. I've never intended to use my Death Note, but I've kept it with me so others won't use it. This holster," Ebony touched the corner of the hip holster she was never seen without, "this was hers. So was this cross," She then wrapped her fingers around the pentacle-cross at her throat, "My whole world fell apart when she vanished, and now I find out that she's still alive….I just couldn't handle it…that she was still alive and never…never came back for me…"

L went over what he'd told her, putting the events along a timeline in his head. Her human mother died at Ebony's birth and it was assumed that the baby Ebony had died as well. She lived in fear of her father, had little food and clothing, and got mixed up in street fights until she was nine years old. She entered the world of illegal bare knuckled fighting when she was nine and lost her second mother when she was twelve. She left her father's home when she was thirteen and continued to participate in bare knuckled fights until she was sixteen. Then she left the illegal fighting world and took a job as a cake decorator when she was seventeen, only to be forced back to the fighting at eighteen, then leave it again now and seeing her previously-assumed-dead Shinigami mother.

It was amazing how complicated some people's lives could be.

"Your Shinigami heritage, that is why you look the way you do," L gingerly touched a lock of her sugar-white hair, wrapping it around his finger as he recalled the female Shinigami's equally white features, "You are not an albino. This makes much more sense since it would explain why sunlight doesn't bother you."

"Yes," Ebony shrugged, "The fact that albinism exists is the perfect cover for me. I got lucky in that sense, I suppose," She then glanced at the finger entwined in her hair, a confused look taking over her sad face. She looked up at him and didn't look away this time, "You're not…bothered?"

"No. Not really," L said lightly, continuing to play with her hair, "I see no reason to be, unless you have used your Death Note and are lying about doing so. Other than that, nothing is really any different."

"Thank you," The sincerity in her voice showed just how much his acceptance meant to her, "But, you do realize that you're the owner of my Death Note now, right? You became its owner the second you touched it back while I was in confinement."

"What precisely does ownership of a Death Note entail?" L asked. He wanted to know exactly what had been happening since he unknowingly became the owner of Ebony's Death Note.

"Well, simply owning a Death Note won't do anything to you," Ebony replied, her nerves calming significantly as long as the weight of L's arm stayed about her shoulders, "Other rules only come into play if you actually used the Death Note. Even if you own a Note and another person uses it, you won't have to worry over any other rules since you yourself never used it to kill anyone."

"…I see," L mused, some of his worry lifting as he realized he was still safe at the moment, "Going by the behavior of your mother, I can only conclude that a Shinigami must stay with the owner of their Death Note," He then grinned at her, petting her sugar hair again, "I suppose this means that you can't trade yourself away from me again."

Ebony giggled as she recalled how physically difficult it had been to leave him that first time. Since she'd never been in love before, she had assumed that that was the reason why the pull to him was so strong when it was actually from his ownership of her Death Note. She tucked her head under his chin, feeling overwhelmed by all the emotions she'd been flipping between for the last month or so. L was just so bizarre. She had just told him that she was partially Shinigami, and he was glad that she was still there with him. She wasn't sure exactly what part of his brain was screwed up enough for that to happen, but she was thankful for the glitch all the same.

"Come," L stood and offered her his hand, "The others are sleeping. You should come see your mother."

Ebony nodded, taking his hand and watching as he entwined their fingers rather than holding her hand as he did everything else. He wanted the sensation of touch in his entire palm, his every finger, which was saying something since L never seemed to allow himself to come into contact with anything any more intimately than with his thumb and index fingertips.

"Rem-san," L poked his head out from the kitchen door, gaining the tall, lanky Shinigami woman's attention, "Someone wishes to see you."

Rem didn't think anything of his statement and merely watched as the shaggy haired man who threatened Misa's happiness entered the room. She saw the small, white hand he was holding in his own, following the cloth covered arm that it was attached to until…

'_No…It's….it's impossible!'_

Rem gaped as a young woman with cherry blossom colored eyes, ivory skin, and long, curly white hair came out from the other room. She hadn't seen her in years, and she had certainly grown, but there was no denying it.

"Mama," The girl said softly, not trusting her voice to project anything louder. Her fingers were tightly gripping a familiar silver pentagram-cross hanging between her collar bones, "Do…you remember me?"

"E…Ebony?" Rem's visible eye was widened to its limit and it almost looked like, had it been possible, she would have been weeping, "You…you're alive?"

The air left Ebony's lungs in a rush as she smiled and rushed from her previous place by L's side to wrap her arms around the stunned Shinigami's waist, holding on as tightly as she could even though she was so cold. Rem registered the warmth in the body embracing her, letting her know that this girl was actually real.

Her daughter was really alive…

"Ebony," Rem knelt down and hugged her daughter as said girl adjusted her grip so her arms were around her neck instead of her waist, "You're alive. But how? What happened?"

"The Death Note didn't kill me," Ebony felt herself shaking slightly, feeling her mother's chunky hair against her cheek, one of her golden hoop earrings cold against her temple, "It just gave me a heart attack, but I lived. I lived. Why didn't you come back for me?"

"I thought you were dead," Rem explained, "I watched as you fell to the ground in that dirty alleyway, as you clutched at your heart. The Shinigami King made me watch, but I couldn't watch your body still and never move again, so I turned away. I thought you were dead."

"I thought _you_ were dead," Ebony replied. Everything around them simply melted away as they spoke to each other for the first time in six years. Even L's presence a mere seven feet or so away went unnoticed, "What happened?"

"All of my life was taken away," Rem said softly, "I had to start over; writing human's names every day. Watching you die was the worst kind of punishment the Shinigami King could think to give me," Rem then took Ebony by the shoulders and moved her away some so she could look at her, "You have grown to be very beautiful."

"Heh…thank you," Ebony placed her hands over her face, still in complete awe over what was happening, "You're really here! When I saw the monitor I thought I was dreaming!"

"No dream," L said from his place in his chair that he'd turned around to view the reunited family.

"Detective," Rem looked to him before looking to Ebony, "Why are you here with him?"

"Ryuzaki has been taking care of me," Ebony smiled as she looked over to the man who had done so much for her, "I have a place to live now, and he even made sure that I never have to go back to the fighting again, ever."

Rem looked over at the detective again, seeing how he and her daughter were looking at each other. It was like how Misa looked at Yagami Light, only different. Real love was in their gaze, unlike with Misa, and unlike with Yagami Light, L was genuinely returning the gaze to her daughter, not simply pretending to.

They were _in_ _love_.

Ebony spent hours talking to Rem, knowing they couldn't be so candid once the task force members rose from their sleep and rejoined them in the control room. She sat cross-legged on the couch, just as Rem remembered from so long ago, and told of everything that had been happening over her life since she went away, not editing anything out. Rem shared her stories as well, only leaving out how she had given Gelus's Death Note to Misa. After some time, Ebony fell asleep on the couch, curled up like a kitten. Rem watched as the awkward detective rose from his seat to cover Ebony with a warm blanket, his movements unbelievably tender, something she had seen very little of during her times in the human world, especially from human males.

"Detective," Rem pulled his attention to her, "You are treating my daughter differently than you do others. You look at her differently as well."

"Yes. I suppose I do," L smiled down at the Shinigami's daughter, doing nothing to hide the affection in his dark eyes, "I expected you to notice that, seeing as how you are her mother. Your daughter is a very lovable person and brought me to my knees with little to no effort on her part. There was nothing I could do but fall prey to her unintentional charms. I did try to avoid it, for her sake, but I still fell in love with her by the end," L then tilted his head slightly as an amusing thought came to mind, "How difficult it will be to interrogate the mother of the woman I've come to love!"

* * *

Author's Note: So? What do you think? It was the most original idea I could come up with, and it worked well since Rem has always seemed very motherly to me with how she goes out of her way to protect Misa. I like Rem and was so mad at Light when she died! Evil bastard! But believe me, it was hell having to make Ebony and Rem dance around each other so they wouldn't see each other until now. It took me weeks to finally figure out how I was going to make that work, which was why I made Ebony get sick so she wouldn't see Misa and Rem at the college and so she wouldn't see Rem in the confinement before Misa gave up her Death Note. I think I made this work out pretty well without making my brain explode. I had to write out the entire timeline from my Death Note 13: How to Read It encyclopedia and alter it to fit Ebony in! It took forever and my poor fingers felt the pain! Ah well. No pain, no gain, right?

**Lady of Dreams and Nightmares:** SORRY FOR LYING!! I just didn't want to say you were right and have people snoop around the reviews to figure it out. Everyone, this person is super smart! She figured out Ebony was part Shinigami way back in chapter 12. She's super smart! Bow down to her stunning intellect!

**OoOlady heatherOoO:** So she was running from Rem. It's understandable. She thought she was dead. But now they're together again! So happy!

**Marisol Akyri:** No, she can't sense who has Death Notes. She can just see Shinigami since she is sort of one herself. Isn't this cooler than sensing Death Notes, though?

**xlostinmyownworldx:** Hi! New reviewer! I'm glad you like my story. Does this still work for you? I hope so! By the way, I love your name!

**SugarLandBabyGirl:** Yeah, an evil cliffhanger, but I'm cruel like that. Cliffhangers are wonderful as long as you're the author. Hee!

**MythCreatorWriter:** Yeah, I used your 'Dance, puppets, dance!!' thing. I thought it fit so well! Yeah, this chapter was full of drama and secrets, wasn't it? Do you like how I used Rem here? I hope so!

**vala-anna:** Yeah, Light's Kira again, the little prick. He's such a bastard!

So now we know how Rem can recognize love and how she knew what happened to people who allowed others to use them. You remember that from that little chapter with Rem telling Gelus's tale to Misa? There was a purpose for it. Please review for me!

-HaleyJo


	40. I Love You

Author's Note: Ok, I think that's all the secrets. At least for now, anyway. Who knows what'll show up next, though.

* * *

**40. I LOVE YOU**

Ebony hummed her lullaby contentedly as she kicked her legs back and forth over the arm of the couch, her hair spread across the seat cushions and she stared upside down at Rem, the mother she'd thought she'd lost so many years ago and now found still lived. The last few days had probably been the best days of her entire life. She was able to hang around with both her mother and L as much as she wished, which was all the time, and she no longer had to fear the illegal fighting world since her previous employers were all in prison, unable to ever threaten her again. Her smile just refused to disappear and she didn't mind in the least. It was true that she couldn't be completely open with her mother whenever the other members of the investigation were present, but she wasn't going to complain. She had more right now than she'd ever had before. What was there to complain about?

Well, it was kind of hard to have any moments with L since her mother was around all the time, and that kind of bugged her. She could tell L felt the same since she sometimes caught him staring at her mouth, but kissing in front of her mother was something neither of them was particularly eager to do. If she had to complain, that would have been the only thing to complain about. But since it was only one thing, she kept her mouth shut.

"Ryuk-kun?"

Ebony looked at the screen showing Misa waiting to see Light. Since she was proclaimed innocent with the thirteen-day rule, L had no way to keep her in the building anymore, so she was now considered an outsider and therefore unable to enter the building again. Ebony had to admit that she missed Misa's bubbly personality. L noticed Ebony's voice and looked up as well, only seeing Misa there.

'_Oh! She sees a Shinigami,'_ L realized. Ebony's eyes were rather wide and she seemed to be muttering under her breath.

"Ebony," L whispered, low enough for others to be unable to hear, "There is a Shinigami with Amane?"

"Yes," Ebony whispered back, "The darker one in my sketchbook. He was Light-san's Shinigami, but now he seems to be Misa-san's. I don't understand…"

So, Ryuk had been there the entire time before Light lost his memories. That certainly explained why Ebony had never once questioned his accusations toward Light since she knew for a fact that he was Kira, she just couldn't tell anyone. It also explained why she was so tense at those times and even why she would laugh at 'nothing' occasionally. But now this Ryuk was attached to Misa.

"Mama," Ebony tugged on one of Rem's webbed fingers, seeing her horrified expression, "Mama? Are you ok?"

"…I'm fine," Rem responded, also keeping her voice low. Who knew what these humans would do if they discovered that she was Ebony's mother? People with drastic differences were always persecuted. Evidence of such was clear throughout history, and she didn't want her daughter subjected to any more pain than she had already had to live through.

But Misa's lifespan…It had dropped again. She must have made the eye-trade with Ryuk in order to be useful to Light, in order to be his eyes. Protecting Misa was getting more and more difficult, especially now that L had Ebony to rely on whenever Rem was being difficult about answering his questions. She was lucky that she hadn't explained all the rules to her daughter before, otherwise Misa and Light would have been caught by now.

"Mama," Rem turned her attention back to her daughter, "You were Misa-san's Shinigami, weren't you?"

"…I can't answer that," Rem stated, "It's against the rules."

"But I'm one of you," Ebony insisted, "There's no rule about Shinigami chatting over the people they've possessed over their existence. I'm possessing Ryuzaki right now."

"You gave him your Death Note?!"

"No. He just happened to touch it when he frisked my holster back while I was in confinement with Misa-san and Light-san and his father. We didn't even know until I told him what I am," Ebony bit her lip, "You're trying to protect Misa-san, aren't you?"

Rem didn't answer, but her silence was answer enough. She was trying to protect the blonde model, and Ebony couldn't help but feel a slight pang of jealousy. What made people love Misa so much? Why was it so easy for her to gain the affections of almost everyone around her, even from a Shinigami? Her hand tightened around Rem's cold finger, almost as though that would make it so that she only worried about her instead of Misa. She knew it was selfish of her, but she missed her mother. She couldn't help it.

"Rem-san," L gained the Shinigami's attention as he held up the notebook open to a particular page, "This page of the murder notebook has a piece ripped out. If you write someone's name on a piece that's been removed, will it kill the person?"

"Who knows?" Rem replied, "I've never used it that way, so I wouldn't know."

"Ebony?" L turned to her, "Would it still work?"

"Common sense says it would, yeah," Ebony shrugged, "But I don't know. I've never had access to the rules personally, and I've obviously never used mine."

"Then do Shinigami only eat apples? Like you do, Ebony."

"I don't think so," Ebony made her humming sound, "Shinigami don't need to eat, but they do sometimes just for the flavor," She then dropped her voice with a grin on her face, "Ryuk-kun is addicted to them. The poor guy! He must have been through hell during Light-san's confinement!"

The sound of the door made L turn to see Light returning from his brief talk with Misa outside, "That was fast, Yagami-kun," L said through a mouth full of pudding a la mode, "You're free now, yet you hardly ever leave here…Misa-san comes and you just talk to her briefly in the lobby…You can go outside and have a love life, you know."

"The Kira case hasn't been solved yet," Light replied, "I'm in no mood for love at the moment. Or do you not like having me here?"

"No…"

Ebony frowned at Light, clenching her fingers tightly. She could clearly see that Light was watching L, making sure he wouldn't run off with the Death Note. L knew it too, or he at least suspected it, and it was obviously making him uncomfortable. She understood what it was like to be constantly monitored, and it was no picnic. You got a little claustrophobic after a while.

L sighed slightly when Ebony moved from the couch across from him to sit beside him, letting her shoulder bump gently against his. There she went again, trying to comfort him whenever he showed the smallest bit of unease. He was a bit surprised when she rested her head against his shoulder since that was not something she would normally do in view of the others, but he appreciated it all the same.

"You know, I liked Light-san and Misa-san better when neither of them were Kiras," She quipped in a casual tone. L felt a slight smile tug at his lips, appreciating her attempts to cheer him up.

-oooOooo-

"Watari?"

"Yes, my dear?" Watari spun halfway around in his chair as the Shinigami girl entered his room filled with computer monitors. She knew that he knew of what she was. It was impossible for him not to since he oversaw all the goings-on in the building and therefore saw it when she confessed to L what she was and what she knew. He watched as she glanced around at the computers in fascination before settling her gaze on him to say what she wanted to say.

"Do you know where Ryuzaki is?" She asked, her fingers nervously playing with each other as she rocked back on her heels, "He vanished several hours ago, and I can't seem to find him. I asked Mama, but she said that she didn't know where he was since she wasn't obligated to follow him around since he wasn't the owner of her Death Note. I'm honestly surprised she's not following _me_ around…"

Watari smiled when she shook her head slightly and reestablished eye contact with him after having let it fall as her thoughts wandered. She was a rather remarkable girl to still be relatively normal after all she'd lived through. It had been the exact opposite for L back when he was young...

"I believe Ryuzaki is up on the roof," Watari answered her so as to rid himself of those memories.

"The roof? In this weather?" Ebony frowned. It was raining cats and dogs outside, and L hated storms. Why was he up on the roof?

"Do you think you could get him to come down?" Watari asked her, "When he gets into these moods, it's hard to get him back out of them."

"I'll try. No guarantees, though," Ebony shrugged and turned to leave, "Thank you, Watari."

"You're welcome," Watari sighed as he turned back to his monitors, recalling the last time L had been in one of these moods. They usually came up during this kind of weather…

_--_

_Watari was surprised to find the room empty when he opened the door. While it wasn't terribly unusual for the dark haired man he was seeking to prowl about during the night, he would normally inform him of whenever he was going to go wandering about so as not to worry or startle the older man. Listening to his paternal instincts telling him that something was wrong, Watari began to search through the hotel suite they had booked for this case that had brought them back to London. When he came up with nothing, he gave in to his worst suspicions and headed for the roof._

_He reached the roof rather quickly for a man his age and opened the door, his grey-blue eyes locking on a slim figure standing near the air conditioning units on the roof. The figure's wide eyes were staring upward, heedless of the rain that was soaking through his white shirt and baggy blue jeans, making them cling to his ghostly pale skin. His ink black hair that always earnestly defied gravity hung heavy with moisture. Still not completely flat, but not sticking up as it normally would._

"_Ryuzaki," Watari walked forward until the umbrella he was holding shielded both him and the young man from the falling rain, "We need to get you inside. You're soaked to the bone."_

_It took a while, but the man seemed to finally register that he wasn't alone and turned his dark, empty eyes to his companion, who almost wished he hadn't. These were the eyes that had constantly been present back when he first brought him to the Wammy's House and always reappeared during dark, forbidding weather like this._

"_Billie told me to stay put," He said, his listless voice betraying pain, "She said I'd be safe in the tree house. She said she'd come back after the bells stopped. She never came back."_

"…_I know, L," Watari rested a hand on L's bony shoulder and began to nudge him toward the stairwell he had climbed to get here, "I know."_

_--_

L stared upward at the dark, weeping sky, his mind a little muddled instead of clear and methodical like it usually was. His hands rested in his pockets, making no moves to wipe away the beads of water trailing incessantly down his face and neck, dripping from the ends of his hair and chin. His ears were filled with the sounds of church bells ringing, never ceasing, never faltering. They just kept on ringing.

It was a strange feeling, knowing Death was close, waiting to reach out and rip your soul from your body and drag it off to who knew where. He actually felt rather calm about it, wasn't afraid like he assumed a normal person would be. He had spoken to Watari earlier, informing him that he was headed for the roof for a while, and confessed that he was certain his death was near. Both knew that, by association, Watari's death might be nearing as well. It seemed normal for Watari to be calm about death since was sixty-one years old. Perhaps slightly too young to die, but not too young to expect much more from life. He had had a rich life, seeing places all over the world, bringing highly gifted children who were often misunderstood due to their talents to his internationally established orphanages, gaining a fortune he used to make said orphanages with many patents on inventions…he had done a lot with his life.

L knew the old man felt that L was dying far too young, only newly twenty-five, but L had been unafraid of death for many years now. And when he took up the title of 'L', he had known he would die what most would consider young.

But he felt so _old_. That seemed to be a curse that followed high levels of intelligence. Early maturity, understanding of concepts without having to experience them firsthand, alienation from peers, repeatedly being misunderstood or begrudged for the intelligence, and the list went on and on. He was young in body, yes, but so old in mind and soul. He was so tired by now that death really didn't sound all that bad.

"L...?"

Once the voice filtered through the sounds of the bells he was all but deafened by, L turned slowly toward it, his dark eyes falling into contrastingly pink and crimson ones. How had Ebony known he was here? Wait, Watari had probably told her. Perhaps he shouldn't have told Watari where he was going. He didn't want Ebony to see him like this since seeing him upset usually made her upset. However, knowing her, she would have frisked the building in order to find him. It was kind of odd seeing her hair straighter than usual due to the weight of the rain and he quickly found that he missed the curls her ivory hair was normally bouncing in. Most females these days went to great lengths to straighten their hair, so one didn't come across curly hair often.

"L?" Ebony's hand came to wrap around his elbow, her cheek against his shoulder. Her voice was somehow growing stronger than the bells, "What's wrong?"

'_Everything,'_ L answered her in his mind, knowing doing so verbally would hurt her,_ 'I will die soon, and I have just fallen in love with you. You came into my life and now I am about to leave yours. I'm sorry I allowed my feelings to grow and more than likely stir yours. My death will hurt you, Ebony. I'm so sorry.'_

"I apologize," Was his answer instead, "The bells are just very loud today. The conditions are perfect for them. A church, I believe. A wedding, maybe?"

"…You don't have to say it if you don't want to," Ebony moved and wrapped her arms around his narrow frame, wondering why he was speaking about bells of all things, "But I'm here for you anyway. I promise."

L sighed and a few moments later, he finally got his arms to move to embrace her as she embraced him, allowing his head to rest in the crook of her slender neck. He could only hope that having her mother back would give Ebony the strength to move on with her life once he was gone. He had never prayed before, but now he was pleading with whatever power that be that Ebony would survive and find happiness somewhere with someone who could protect her from the horrors he had condemned her to the moment he heard her name mentioned by Yagami Light's kid sister.

"Ebony," L directed her face up to his, just scarcely grazing his lips over hers, "Thank you for everything."

Ebony fought against tears as L's lips closed over hers for the first time since two days ago when they'd stolen a quick kiss when Rem wasn't looking and the others were sleeping. It was strange how familiar his sweet taste was after only a handful of kisses, but she didn't care. Instead, she tried to focus on his cool, damp lips, tried to forget the world for just a while.

Ebony lifted her arms to bury her fingers in his thick black hair, not protesting even the slightest when L's long arms draped around her small frame to bring their bodies into full contact. She allowed him to do as he pleased, not hesitating to open her mouth for him when his tongue prodded gently at her lips. He needed this right now, that much was obvious, and since he had done so much for her by this point, she didn't even think twice about letting him use their affections to block out his harsh reality for just this moment. She felt one of his long hands move up from the dip of her lower back, his spidery fingers creeping up into her wet hair to hold her closer.

After an immeasurable moment, L released her lips to allow them to breathe, resting his head against her shoulder again. He pressed his lips to the cold skin of her neck, the flesh robbed of its heat by the pouring rain.

"L?"

"Hm?" Ebony seemed to hold her breath for a moment and L could feel her pulse quickening against his lips. She then swallowed and moved her hands to rest on his slumped shoulders.

"I love you."

Ebony's breath hitched in her throat when L's long fingers abruptly tightened in her hair and the fabric of her shirt. He seemed to be shaking slightly, but she couldn't be sure if that was from her admission or the freezing rain drenching their thin bodies. His hands then moved to her shoulders and pushed her away slightly so they were facing each other.

"Say that again, please," His words were soft and pleading, whispering across her lips intimately, "Please, while you're looking at me, say that again."

Ebony smiled gently at him as her cheeks turned a soft crimson color. She lifted her hands from his shoulders and cupped them around his angled face, resting her forehead against his.

"L…I love you."

In defiance of his thoughts of death and the memories the growing storm stirred within his mind, a smile of pure, genuine surprise and joy stretched across his face, wide enough to bare his white teeth. Ebony had never seen such a smile on his normally stone face and it was so beautiful to her that it stole the breath from her lungs and the strength from her knees. It was lucky that he was holding her so tightly, because her legs now refused to hold her weight.

"You are an amazing creature, love," L finally said at length as he buried his face in her neck again, his lips brushing her skin as he spoke, "You may not think so, but I know so."

"'Love'…that sounds nice….And I have to believe you since you're the great detective L?" Ebony replied easily as she moved her hand to rest it in his wild hair.

"Well….Yes! Of course you do," L's smile refused to leave, a phenomenon he was not at all familiar with but was treasuring greatly, "I know everything!"

Ebony giggled, flicking the back of his head in response to his teasingly arrogant statement, "Can we get out of the rain, please? It's cold!"

"I feel warm enough," L replied, tracing random patterns against her back with his fingertips.

"You are bigger than me, and therefore better at retaining your body heat," Ebony replied with a mocking huff, "I am tiny, and therefore completely unable to retain even the slightest bit of body heat and whatever heat I am making you're stealing from me right now!"

"Very well," L sighed heavily and allowed her to pull him out of the rain and back into the building. That didn't do much for the heat problem, though. The headquarters was virtually empty with only about eight people in it, so the air was always rather cold.

"I swear there's ice crystallizing in my hair," Ebony mumbled under her breath as she pulled her hair over her shoulder and proceeded to squeeze out the excess moisture, "Going out in the rain at the beginning of freakin' November. Stupid idiot."

L continued to grin even as she insulted him. Nothing could bring down his spirits at this moment, not even his impending death. The girl he loved had just told him that she loved him. How could he possibly continue to be depressed after that? After watching her struggle with her rain-tangled hair for a moment, L entwined his fingers with hers and began to lead them away from the roof, a trail of water left in their wake.

He almost didn't notice how she'd stopped the bells.

* * *

Author's Note: Sorry. I lied. Apparently there are more secrets. I just forgot that when I wrote that bit at the top. So I didn't lie, per se. Just forgot.

**SugarLandBabyGirl:** Glad you liked the twist. I had always been set on making Ebony half Shinigami and that her mother was dead, but then Rem came to mind and it seemed too perfect not to use. I like Rem.

**HahynGirl:** Best chapter so far? Yay! I hope the rest can be up to par.

**arisa0:** Good. It was supposed to be unexpected. I'm glad I was able to pull it off. Thank you!

**Alexandritee:** Ooh! Haven't seen your name before. An interesting one, too. Where'd you come up with it?

**xlostinmyownworldx:** I'm so, so, so happy you like Ebony being part Shinigami! I love making my reviewers happy! Especially after torturing them with secrets or cliffhangers.

**MythCreatorWriter:** I made up how Ebony is part Shinigami. The rule about not handing the Death Note directly to a six-year-old is true, but I made up the part about humans being susceptible to Shinigami auras. I worried about how well Rem being her mother was going to work too, but she seems very motherly to me.

**Hao'sAnjul:** Yeah, I thought using Rem like this would be very original since she seems to get forgotten quite a lot. And who knows who she'll follow. Remember, she's Light's Shinigami right now.

**IvoryCrayon:** No, I don't catch your drift. What did you mean? Oh, and skin Light whenever you please. I hate the bastard too.

**Mel1983:** I have absolutely no idea how long this story is going to be. It's taken on a life of its own. But, yeah, it's probably going to be really long. I will do my best to keep up the awesomeness as you requested as long as you keep up your awesomeness with your stories. Hee!

**OoOlady heatherOoO:** I'm glad you like this twist. I was worried how people would take it.

**Marisol Akyri:** Yeah, Ebony is L's Shinigami! Of course, she was his already, but whatever. I think L can be killed by Death Notes, though. Light killed Higuchi, and he owned a Death Note.

**vala-anna:** I'm glad this all seems to flow together. I'd been a little worried it would sound choppy.

Please review for me!

-HaleyJo

_**BIG**__** IMPORTANT **__**ANNOUNCEMENT**__**:**_ School is starting soon, in two days, so my updates will probably slow down. Please don't be mad at me. Unfortunately, schoolwork is more important than writing in the real world. (sighs sadly) Oh well. I'll try to update as often as I can. Promise!! :)


	41. For Whom the Bell Tolls

Author's Note: I'm glad you all liked the last chapter, but I think I'm going to have to barricade my door and board over my windows after this one.

* * *

**41. FOR WHOM THE BELL TOLLS**

Ebony frowned. It sickened her how much control Light had over poor Misa. He was having her kill criminals again, and it was obvious that Misa would be the first suspect. At least in L's eyes, which were the eyes that mattered the most in this investigation. Why would he do this? It made no sense! She couldn't do anything but stand in the background and watch, worrying her lower lip between her teeth.

"This happens the moment Amane was freed," L mused aloud as he bit off half a chocolate animal cracker.

"Ryuzaki, you're still saying that," Light sighed in feigned exasperation, "This has nothing to do with Misa. She was already suspected of being the second Kira. Even if she did have Kira's powers, she isn't stupid enough to use it at a time like this. If you're talking about timing, then say 'the moment Higuchi died'."

"That's true…"

"Light's right, Ryuzaki. We need to forget about Amane," Soichiro backed his son and his girlfriend, "Those who use the notebook die unless they keep writing victim's names. Amane's innocence has been proven based on that."

"Yes, you're too obsessed with your theories, Ryuzaki," Aizawa agreed, "You keep trying to go back to them."

"Yes, I apologize…Well, if there's another notebook out there that someone is using," L snapped a cracker between his long fingers, "I will definitely catch that person."

L's mind was racing. He was certain Misa was doing this, his gut told him so, but just like with Yagami Light, he couldn't prove it. Especially with that 13-day rule. How stupid he was to have not asked Ebony about that! Rem had given Ebony her Death Note to use as a last resort, but he found it hard to believe that she would have condemned her daughter to having to kill someone every thirteen days.

But that wasn't proof. That was mere speculation, and it would put Ebony in danger since she had known the truth for so long and not told anyone, and he doubted anyone would react well to learning of her bloodline, which would also inevitably spill out. What was he going to do?

Ebony's fingers began playing with her dime earring, her nerves on end for some reason. She looked up to Rem to try to distract herself, but her mother's expression was that of horror and shock. She wrapped her fingers around one of her mother's webbed ones since her hand was too small to actually hold her whole hand, but Rem didn't respond.

"Mama?" Ebony whispered, shaking her icy hand a little, "Mama, what's wrong?"

Rem could only stare ahead in utter disbelief, feeling the conflict within her dead heart. Ebony, her only daughter, was in love with the detective who now threatened the safety of Misa, the girl she had come to see as a surrogate daughter. Light had set things up so that Rem would have to kill the detective in order to save Misa's life, which would extend the blonde girl's lifespan, and due to her feelings for Misa, she would die from extending her life. Everything that would unfold from L's death would wrap up the whole case perfectly for Light. Neither she nor L would be a threat to him anymore.

But she couldn't simply explain everything now since doing so would give Misa life in jail or more likely the death penalty no matter how much she had been manipulated by Light, and Rem couldn't go down and take Light with her since Misa needed Light in order to live. She had said before when Rem came to her behind Higuchi's back to talk to her about the Yotsuba that she couldn't live on without him if he died.

But what about Ebony? What would happen to her if L died? Rem knew that her daughter was deeply in love with the detective. Would she die if L did? Ebony was stronger than Misa, but that also made her more fragile when she actually did attach herself to someone. If the only human being who had ever cared for Ebony's heart were to die, would she give up on life as well? Would she simply waste away until her tormented soul was finally freed from its physical prison? Would she even commit suicide just to end the pain she was sure to suffer if L died here today? Was it possible that, in her grief and despair, she might even use her Death Note to kill Light and Misa in revenge for L's death no matter how opposed she was to killing?

The only thing Rem could be certain of was that, no matter what choice she made, one of the girls would come out with a shattered heart and even death.

Two choices, one outcome.

What would she choose?

Ebony's happiness, or Misa's…?

'_Amane is freed and Kira returns…I've learned some things from talking to this Shinigami, but for all the important matters, it's always "I don't know"…Yesterday I asked if you could kill with only a piece of the Death Note and all I got was "I don't know"…If you could kill by writing the name on just a piece,'_ L began biting his thumb harshly, nearly breaking the skin, _'It wouldn't be impossible! Actually, if that could be done, then Kira could kill someone at any time…even Higuchi that time…and Ebony said that she thought it was possible, so it must be, but her word won't prove anything since she can't back it up in any safe way._

'_However,'_ L pulled his thumb away and reached for another cracker, biting off the panda's head, _'That 13-day rule…it sounds like a reasonable penalty for using such a thing, but it's just far too convenient. It ties down Yagami Light and Amane Misa's innocence too tightly…It's just not…'_

"I don't care what country, let's contact them," L told Watari through the laptop, "There shouldn't be a problem if we're upfront about it. We'll have them use the notebook in an execution."

Everyone started protesting all at once.

"You mean to test it?!"

"No way! We don't need to do that! The power of the notebook is clearly real!"

"Yeah, and who's gonna write the name down? Once you start, you have to continuously write names in every thirteen days, or you die!"

"We'll have a criminal scheduled to be executed in thirteen days write the name down," L replied calmly, lifting a spoon in his hand to stir several sugar cubes into his coffee, "The deal will be that if the person lives past thirteen days, then his death sentence will be commuted."

'_Ryuzaki, this means you still suspect Misa and me,'_ Light hid his smile, _'But that's perfect.'_

'_If he does this, the 13-day lie will be exposed and Misa's innocence based on the confinement will be overturned,' _Rem was still deaf to Ebony's attempts to gain her attention, _'And with that gone, the video evidence, the notebook, the talking about the eyes and Shinigami, Misa will immediately be suspected. As I thought, Ryuzaki is trying to move the investigation back to Misa.'_

"Watari," L spoke to the laptop again, ignoring the continuous protesting around him, "Contact the leader of a country who would agree to this."

Rem remembered this 'Watari'. He had been in the helicopter with them after Higuchi's death and L had passed important information along to him since then. He was L's right-hand man.

"Mama?" Ebony followed Rem, her grip tight on her finger until the white Shinigami disappeared through the wall to their right, keeping Ebony from being able to follow since she couldn't phase through solid objects like a true Shinigami. The white haired girl hit her fist against the wall, "Wait! Where are you going? Mama?"

L glanced over at Ebony, his ears instantly homed in on her distressed voice. She was hitting the wall with her fist while the other was splayed against the cold material. She had one ear pressed to the wall and was calling out for her Shinigami mother, Rem. What was going on?

_**Crash!!**_

L's focus was instantly back on the monitor through which Watari spoke.

"What's wrong, Watari?"

No answer.

L held out his hands as though to grab the screen, "Watari…?"

A sudden loud BEEEEEEEP noise resounded from the equipment as every light in the building turned a blood red. Every monitor was brandishing the same three words:

'_All data deleted.'_

"Data deleted…?" Light questioned from over L's shoulder, "What's going on?"

"I told Watari that if something ever happened to him, he should erase all the data he can," L replied, his voice dark and cold, "And to set his system up to erase automatically after a certain amount of time," L lifted his spoon again and demanded, "Where's the Shinigami?!"

Everyone turned in search of her, but she was nowhere to be seen. None of them noticed how Ebony was at the wall and seemingly talking to someone on the other side, or at least trying to, until the alarm around them jolted her from her attempts to call her mother back to her side. Her rosy eyes looked around in alarm, her crimson pupils dilated more than usual from the dark red light, making her pink irises less easy to see.

"What's happening?!" Ebony looked scared, an expression never seen on her face before. It made everyone else around her even more terrified.

'_This is Misa's happiness, to be with Yagami Light,'_ On the other side of the wall, Rem stood slumped over, watching as her body began to deteriorate into the same unknown, sandy, rusty substance Gelus had before her, _'But Yagami Light…to kill even a Shinigami…he's surpassed the Shinigami…_

'_And my precious daughter…Ebony…Ebony Rose…'_ Rem's dead heart twisted in pain as she listened to Ebony's cries for her to come back, her sweet voice tainted by fear and confusion, _'Please forgive me…this is the only way…'_

"Mama?!" Ebony pounded on the wall even more, not caring if anyone heard how she addressed the Shinigami woman she was certain was close enough to hear her, "What's wrong? Come back! Mama!!"

"Everyone," L called their attention, "The Shiniga-"

……

"…Huh? What's wrong, Ryuzaki?" Soichiro asked. It was unlike the quirky detective to pause in the midst of a sentence. Ebony spun around, also having noticed the slight kink in his behavior.

He could hear the bells again, and they were louder than ever.

L felt his heart stutter for just a second before it stopped completely. He could no longer draw breath and he felt his senses dulling due to the sudden lack of oxygen, made even more so since his cut-off sentence had used half of what air he'd had left in his lungs. He couldn't stop himself as he started to fall, gravity pulling him downward since his body could no longer fight against it.

How ironic that Light was the one to catch him as they both hit the floor. His hand clenched reflexively onto the fabric of the boy's shirt. His wide eyes stared at the smug grin on Light's face, determining once and for all that Yagami Light truly was Kira. He'd had no doubts, and Ebony's seeing his Shinigami confirmed it, but this was real, solid proof. If only he could show the others.

He could just barely move his eyes, but he wanted to see her just one more time…

Ebony's throat closed. She couldn't breathe. All she could do was watch as L tumbled from his chair in slow motion, caught by Light just before he hit the cold floor. She could only watch as L's gunmetal eyes slowly began to close, somehow seeming more alive now as his last breaths left his lungs. Her hands were shaking and for some reason, her eyes were burning.

"Ryuzaki!!" Light cried in mock despair, "Hey, Ryuzaki!!"

Everyone was at a loss for words until Light started screaming, playing the part of the horrified friend and coworker flawlessly. He screamed something about how the Shinigami would surely come for them next, but nothing happened. Light suddenly jumped up, yelling something about finding that damn Shinigami and everyone ran to follow him, worried about what he was going to do in his 'angered' state. That left the room empty.

Save for one.

On shaky legs that threatened give way under her with every step, Ebony walked over to L's still, prone form. Her legs actually did give way when he was just inches from him. She scooted forward the rest of the way and slowly reached out with her trembling fingers, brushing a few strands of midnight hair from his pale face. Her breaths were shaky as she gently lifted him until his head was rested against her shoulder. Her fingers ran through his perpetually messy hair before moving down and tracing the contours of his face.

'_He's so cold…'_

A drop of moisture then landed on L's cheek, rolling down toward his ear to be swallowed by his messy hair. Another one soon accompanied it, looking like liquid silver in the red lighting around them. It was strange seeing his eyes closed since he didn't seem to permit his eyes to close all that often, unless he was kissing her. Those were the only times she'd ever seen his eyelids hide his gunmetal eyes.

"L…you're not…not going to wa-wake up…are you?" Ebony choked out the words, each one another bullet in her heart. She leaned her forehead against his, shutting her eyes tightly as though that could change what they were telling her brain, "'Humans possessed by Sh-Shinigami meet misfortune'…I'm sorry…I'm so sorry…"

"Ebony-chan?"

Matsuda was the first to reenter the room, seeing the white haired girl on her knees by L's body, holding him carefully in her arms. Her whole body was wracked with tremors, almost as though she was cold. Aizawa bumped into Matsuda since he'd been blocking the doorway and was about to snap at him for that until he, too, noticed Ebony. Mogi, Soichiro, and Light all followed after them, each staring at the girl's back.

"Ebony," Soichiro approached her carefully, "Are you ok?"

It took a minute, but Ebony finally turned her head to look at them, and they were all shocked by what they saw.

Ebony was crying.

Ebony never cried. She didn't cry when she was put in confinement. She didn't cry when she'd had to trade her freedom for Misa's. She didn't cry from all of her serious wounds.

She now cried for L's death, tears rolling uninterrupted down her pale cheeks. She looked like a sorrowful angel, her beautiful face marred by salty trails of tears. She visibly flinched when Soichiro tried to lay a comforting hand on her shoulder, causing him to instantly snatch his hand back. Ebony bit her lip and gathered L's body closer to her, almost begging for the warmth to come back. Because she had only ever hugged Rem before L came into her life, she was accustomed to hugging cold bodies.

But L had always been so warm. She had grown used to his warm touch so quickly, and she was now having it taken away. She wondered if L had heard those bells again as he had died, those deafening bells he had told her always haunted him during rain storms. The heavier the storm, the louder the bells.

'_For whom the bell tolls…'_

* * *

Author's Note: Please do not kill me! If you kill me, I can't update any more and make you all happy!

**Alexandritee:** I've always found rain to be very romantic too. Water in general seems to have that appeal to it. Makes sense L would feel old, after all. He's a Scorpio, which are described as the 'oldest souls' of the Zodiac and the 'most powerful.' That's L in a nutshell. Hey, that rhymed! Hee!

**Lady of Dreams and Nightmares:** Don't ever apologize for your intellect. It is a wonderful thing to have even if it makes you the target of jealous people. Stupid jealous people...

**HahynGirl:** I remember that I cried when I saw L's death in the anime and in the manga even though I knew it was coming. I cried anyway. L is just such a cool character. He makes me feel normal and like there's no 'wrong' way to interact with people when I'm often told what I'm doing wrong in said interactions. I think L is a kind of idol for me.

**IvoryCrayon:** Like I said, I'm cruel to my characters. I planned for Ebony to lose all she had in one go quite some time ago. Sucks, doesn't it?

**SugarLandBabyGirl:** Bittersweet things are calming in a weird way. You know something bad is coming, but you've accepted it by that point and aren't really scared anymore. I think that was L's mentality here.

**arisa0:** Don't stop reading just because I off-ed L. Things aren't always how they appear to be. Cliché, but true.

**Marisol Akyri:** Don't worry. Everything will be explained in time. I like the flashbacks too since nothing is ever learned about L in the manga or anime other than that he was an orphan. That's about it.

**animeskippergirl:** Yay, sugar kick! Those are always great fun. I'm posting!

**MythCreatorWriter:** Thank you. I liked the idea of L smiling a true smile for once, even though all his others are rather adorable as well. Oh yeah, I can't get to that page you sent me. Something wrong with the address.

**The.Myth.Of.Normality:** I'm sorry I could not comply with you request, but don't stop reading now! You'll miss good stuff.

**SomeOtherPerson:** Ebony doesn't have Shinigami eyes. She can't see names or lifespans, only other Shinigami since she is partially one herself. She can see what exists on both planes, if you will. Kind of like Shaman from Shaman King.

Please let me know how I did. Did I write his death good? Oh yeah, and please don't kill me!

-HaleyJo


	42. Ebony's Lullaby

Author's Note: Damn, everyone wants to kill me...

* * *

**42. EBONY'S LULLABY**

The task force who had dedicated their careers to hunting down Kira, originally consisting of ten brave souls, now had dwindled down to seven standing before the graves of their two freshest losses. They were five detectives, one college student, and one half-human girl. Only one of the two graves they were acknowledging was marked with a name. Quillish Wammy, an amazing inventor who had dedicated his final years to bettering the lives of gifted children from all over the world. His loss would be felt worldwide by the many children he had sheltered and cared for over the years. The other grave had no name since the name wasn't known. At least not his real one.

L.

Ryuzaki.

Ryuga Hideki.

Eraldo Coil.

Deneuve.

They couldn't decide on what name to engrave, so they left it unmarked. It seemed fitting somehow, in its own weird way. In any case, most all of them stood there in respect for the dead. The college student though, Yagami Light, was basking in glory of the moment. His adversary, the greatest detective in the world, was now dead. L had defied the will of the new god Kira, and the punishment for such defiance was indisputably death. It was his own fault that he was now dead. He should have known better than to try to match wits with a god.

After a few sentimental words that seemed somehow empty since none of them had ever really known either of the men newly dead, regardless of the fact that they had worked together for over a year in close quarters, the men in the group made to leave.

"Aizawa," A man with almost no eyebrows who had left the investigation before ever meeting L glanced over his shoulder at the strange girl who didn't follow them, "Who exactly is that?"

"That's Accott Ebony Rose. She's the one who was in those illegal fights I told you about after news of the raid got around," Aizawa answered, "She and Ryuzaki were very close. I think they were in love, so his death is hitting her the hardest."

"…I see…"

Ebony wasn't really sure how long it was before she'd realized that everyone else had left, but she didn't really care either way. She didn't want to be around anyone right now anyway. She wanted to be alone.

Her hands fisted where they were entwined together against her lower abdomen in reaction to her absurd thought. She didn't want to be alone. She wanted to be with L and Watari and Rem. The only three people who had ever given a damn about her had been taken away from her in a span of about forty seconds. _Forty seconds_.

A sudden gust of wind disturbed the quiet sanctity of the cemetery. Ebony quickly raised her hands to keep the black hat she was wearing from being blown away. It was the hat Watari wore when acting as the go-between for L and the law enforcements of the world. She was also wearing the white shirt of L's that she'd used while doing laundry and hadn't gotten around to returning to him before he died. The hat, the shirt, the necklace and holster, each was in homage to the three she had lost…had it really been ten days ago already? Time didn't seem to matter to her anymore. It felt like she was simply stuck in the moment of L's death while everything and everyone around her continued on with their daily lives, somehow weaving around this obstacle while she was the only one halted by it.

Well, she supposed it wasn't much different than it was before she'd run into L at the university, knowing him only by Ryuga Hideki then. She really had no idea how her life was going to go, due to her Shinigami blood. Would she have a regular lifespan like a human? She didn't know. All she knew was that, no matter how many years, months, days, or even minutes she had left, each second would be lived in the unrelenting grip of pain and loss.

Ebony's breath hitched in her throat, her hand suddenly clenching over her heart. Once these ten days had passed, making her accept L's death, her grief had numbed her enough for her to realize that Rem, her mother, had killed her new family in order to keep Misa's life happy. That meant….she had loved Misa more than her. She hadn't even made that connection until now, ten days later.

'_Even my own mother couldn't love me,'_ Ebony bit down on her lower lip, almost to the point of tasting blood, _'Why can't anyone love me? What's wrong with me?!'_

Surprisingly enough, she couldn't think up an answer to that question. Why was it that she seemed unlovable? What was it about her that drove people away? She wished she knew, because if she did, maybe she could change it.

…No. Whatever it was, it was probably unchangeable. And regardless, it hadn't bothered L any. Would it be an insult to him to try to change something he'd loved? Yes, yes it would. He wouldn't want her to change just because other people seemed to find something wrong with her. He had loved her, regardless of whatever flaw others seemed to think she had.

Her hand suddenly clenched around her holster, her fingers itching to take out her Death Note and use it to send Yagami Light to Mu where he belonged. She longed for him to die by a Death Note after having used it to kill so many people. It would be the perfect irony, almost Shakespearean in magnitude.

…But she couldn't do it. L would never use the Note in such a way, and she knew that he wouldn't want her to have to live with the knowledge that she'd killed someone in a fit of grieving rage. It would be practically sacrilegious of her to respond to his loss in such a manner. She would never defame his memory that way.

-oooOooo-

"So the battle with L is truly over?" The second Shinigami in Ebony's sketchbook asked as he floated behind the bronze haired boy who had picked up his Death Note about a year ago now, a blonde girl who also owned a Death Note practically glued to the boy's right arm.

"Yeah," Light replied, ignoring Misa's cry of 'Light wins!'.

"Then I can't expect much more fun…" Ryuk sighed in resignation.

"That's not true, Ryuk," Light disagreed in a low voice so as not to alert the other people around them on the sidewalk, "From now on, I'll show you the creation of a new world."

"Oh?"

"They're a lot of idiots out there," Light said, his voice as arrogant as he was, "It's not like everyone is on Kira's side just because L's gone. Now the second battle begins…" He looked down to address the girl beside him, "Misa?"

"What?"

"Let's live together."

Misa just about went nuts at his words, startling several people around them. She was practically dancing down the street until she remembered something.

"Where's Ebony-chan?" Misa asked after she had reattached herself to Light's arm, "I want to tell her the good news! She'll be so happy for us!"

"She's probably still at the cemetery," Light replied, certain that the white haired girl was indeed still there, still mourning the death of his greatest adversary. He didn't like it that he'd had to cause Ebony this pain, but she shouldn't have fallen for someone who would so brashly mock and defy a god. At least now she knew better.

"Oh!" Misa gasped, her face paling slightly. In her joy over Light's victory, she had forgotten that the man Light had finally gotten rid of had been the man that Ebony was in love with. Her first love had died at her very feet, right before her eyes. Misa knew what it was like to have loved ones die right in front of you, having experienced that with her parents back before she discovered the existence of Shinigami and Death Notes and Kira…

'_Oh, poor Ebony-chan,'_ Misa bit her lip as she recalled how she and Ebony had chatted about she and L going off together to solve cases around the world, an ultimate romance that had had the pale girl blushing and hiding behind her hair like a small child.

But Ryuzaki, L, he had needed to die. He was standing in Light's way of creating a perfect world, a utopia on earth. Ebony would find someone else eventually, especially now that the world would soon be inhabited by only good people, increasing her chance of finding a good boyfriend. She would move on…

…Wouldn't she…?

-oooOooo-

The sun was starting to go down now. Ebony had as well by this point, sitting with her knees bent and pulled against her chest, her arms wrapped tightly around them as the chilling wind around her stole away her body heat through her clothes. Her eyes, dulled from grief and dilated to look pure red by the dark, remained locked on the graves before her. She didn't even feel the need to fiddle with her earring or curls of hair. She was too numb, both figuratively and literally.

She knew she couldn't stay here much longer. She needed to go to the headquarters and pack up her things so she could vanish again. There was no way that she could bare to live in close quarters with the man who had orchestrated L and Watari's murders. It certainly wasn't like there was anything left for her here anyway. Everything that had ever mattered to her was gone now.

Ebony didn't notice that she wasn't alone. Misa hadn't been able to keep herself from coming to see how Ebony was doing, to see how she was holding up. She was shocked to see how she was crying, her shoulders trembling from grief and cold. She had never seen her crying before, and it seemed so wrong when compared to her strong, kind personality. The Ebony that she had become accustomed to was always able to think positively unless going through one of her unpredictable mood swings and she always offered her shoulder for others to cry on and find comfort in.

But now, when Ebony was the one crying, the one who needed comforting, the white haired girl was left all alone, no one returning her kind gesture of a shoulder on which to lean and weep. It didn't seem fair that she was being left all alone this way after giving so much. She had traded herself away for a girl she really didn't know all that well, for pity's sake! Why was it that a girl who gave so selflessly got absolutely nothing in return when she really needed it? If there was a god up there, it was a terribly cruel being to hurts its creations in this way.

When the wind picked up again, Misa could hear Ebony's voice on the air, a heartbreaking string of words reaching her ears, words spoken to the white haired girl by her mother so long ago whenever life was too painful.

"When darkness comes show it no fear

I promise you I will always be here

Close your eyes and lay down to sleep

There is no reason for you to weep

Life can be hard and full of pain

But can be washed clean by the rain

Among all the lies this is always true

Never doubt that I love you."

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Author's Note: Yeah...please don't kill me! I can't update if you do!

Please review.

-HaleyJo


	43. Moving Through Shadows

Author's Note: I'm still alive. Amazing!

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**43. MOVING THROUGH SHADOWS**

_On November twenty-first of the year 2004, Ebony Rose Accott disappeared for the second time, leaving no trace of where she went. Due to her intense mourning for the loss of the greatest detective in the world, L, on November fifth of that same year, it was assumed that she succumbed to her overwhelming grief and took her own life, making sure that her body would never be found, much like Misora Naomi before her._

_With both L and Ebony gone, the only two people in the world who were against Kira __and knew his identity, Yagami Light was able to fully take over the Kira investigation with laughable ease. With the second Kira's Shinigami eyes, Light was able to act as Kira more aggressively than he ever could have alone, especially with the flood of criminal names and faces to the internet._

_The second Kira, however, Amane Misa, never was able to push away her guilt from killing her friend's love. Her guilt also led her to believe that her friend's suicide was their fault as well, though she never said so aloud. She merely continued smiling and acting, building her career and supposedly gaining Yagami Light's love by being his eyes. With the two of them working together, the world was inching closer and closer to the dark, fear-filled epoch where Kira is law._

_Under the radar, however, people were moving rapidly through the shadows. Secrets were shared, talented individuals were gathered, and miracles occurred….._

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Author's Note: Ok, please don't kill me. I'm not done yet. I have decided to break this story up into parts because, if I don't, it will be ridiculously long and no one will have the patience to read it all the way through. I have already started writing it, so don't worry about me not finishing the story. I love it too much to quit now. But be patient with me. School has just started and I have Tae-Kwon-Doe three days a week, so I won't have as much time to write as I had in the summer. I promise to continue, though. I won't just let this drop off here. I'd never forgive myself.

-HaleyJo


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